A World of Orange

Back when Dylan and I were living in apartments, I started getting the itch to decorate more and more. While we weren't able to paint walls, per our lease agreements, and we didn't have much money as college students for nice furniture, that didn't stop me from browser-shopping, or from sometimes biting the bullet and clicking that "Submit Order" button. Eeep!

One of the sites that I used to frequent was Urban Outfitters - their modern design and funky patterns really hit home for me, and I loved that they were affordable, too. When browsing their site once, I came across their Atlas Tapestry, and knew at that moment that I would have this and would hang it in my house. I didn't know where, because we didn't have a house, but I had to have it and had to have it in Orange. The Turquoise color was also very eye catching, and bright, but since orange is my favorite color, it was perfect.

I ordered it, and was so excited when it arrived, that I didn't open it, and instead, kept it in it's box for two years. Yeah, I know that doesn't make it sound like I was excited about it, but I could see the tapestry through the clear cellophane bag that it was packaged in, and I knew that if I took it out and unfolded it, that I would never get it back to the way it was and it would never fit in the bag again. So there it sat for three years until I finally had a room for it in our house, or in other words, about two months ago.

Instead of just tacking the tapestry up on the wall, I wanted to mount it so that it looked a little better and it wouldn't stretch out over time. So, I grabbed some 1" x 2" x 4' boards from the hardware store to make a cleat so that I could hang the tapestry on the wall.

Problem was that I couldn't find the attachment for the table saw that allows you to make 45 degree cuts, like you normally would in making a cleat.  Instead, I made a cleat with a notch in it so that the two pieces of wood would stay together when one was placed on top of the other. The piece on the left in the picture below is the one that I attached to the wall, with the cut out up against the wall, so when I added the top piece, they locked together.

The next step was to attach the two cleats to the wall. I measured the size of the tapestry, and gave myself a little buffer from the corner of the walls so that it didn't touch completely. I also wanted to make sure that the tapestry didn't hit the floor, because then it would just get covered in cat hair and thread and fabric scraps, which is not what I wanted. Once I had the height figured out, I marked the wall and then used my combination stud finder and laser level to mark both the studs and make a level line where the top of the cleat should be. I broke out my nail gun to attach the cleat to the wall, nailing it into the studs, which ended up being about every 18 inches. I left a two inch gap between the two cleats, that way I could get the length that I needed, since the tapestry was just over 8' wide, slightly longer than my two cleats. 

With one part of the cleat attached to the wall, I then turned to attach the tapestry to the other half of the cleat. One suggestion before you start stapling your tapestry is to iron or steam it. I totally forgot to do this, and you'll notice in the pictures below. Way too many wrinkles, so get those out before you hang it, otherwise you'll feel like an idiot, like me!

I used a staple gun and put a few staples through the edging of my tapestry, attaching it to the side that would be facing the ceiling, that way the staples and the seam wouldn't show when it was hanging on the wall. If your tapestry has unfinished edges, you may want to fold the fabric down and iron it in place, that way you have more for the staples to grasp on to. I would hate if you went through one layer of the fabric and the threads ripped or pulled so much that it ended up not being secure over time. 

Also, you don't need to be precise about where you are placing your staples, but just so you know, I placed a staple every ten inches, and then once they were all in, I used a hammer to just make them flat to the cleat. 

With the tapestry attached to both pieces of the cleat, it was time to hang it up on the wall. Attach your cleat to the pieces that you have already attached to the wall, and then spread it out a little more to make sure that it is taut and not loose or baggy at the top. And the last step is to stand back and admire your work. 

Don't worry, yours will look much better than mine if you remember to iron or steam it before you attach it to your cleat! But, I still kind of have an issue with the way this looks. I was really hoping that this wasn't going to look juvenile and college-y, but it turns out that it kind of does. 

So, now I'm brainstorming on how I can make this look less young, and a little more "designer." I know that I definitely need to iron or steam it, and that that will help it look better right from the start, but I still feel like it's missing something. Do you think that fully framing it in would look better? Should I add a weight to the bottom to make it a little more flat? Any other suggestions?

Birch Trees and a Decal Review

This past weekend was a very busy one. We have been trying to finish up some of the projects we have started over the last few months, but like it seems to happen over here, things get partially finished and then other things get started. I really should be more diligent about finishing one thing before starting the next, as it would make my to-do list much shorter and my stress levels much lower. But, getting back to this post, yesterday, while Dylan wasn’t feeling well, I took it upon myself to get some one-person work done - specifically, installing the vinyl decal in the guest bedroom.

If you remember back to the design plan that I showed you just over a year ago, I had plans to install a vinyl decal on the wall that the bed is going to be against. I had picked out the Birch Tree Vinyl Decal from Innovative Stencils and I finally got around to installing it yesterday. It had been sitting in the closet for just about a month because I had to wait for the best time to install it. That bedroom has no overhead lighting, and we haven’t purchased any lamps for the space yet, so the only light available in the room is from daylight through the windows. Unfortunately, when I get home from work at night, there isn’t enough light to install the decal, so I was lucky to be able to get it done this weekend.

When I finally opened the packaging, I read through the directions that Innovative Stencils included with my decal, and they seemed really straightforward, so I started with their first step.

As suggested, I took the two sheets of decal that I was shipped and began cutting them into separate sections. Since my Birch Tree Vinyl Decal could be installed using any pattern I wanted, I cut each tree into it’s own sheet and then I was able to arrange them against the wall so I could figure out the order that I wanted. Cutting each tree into its own sheet also made it very easy to install onto the wall later, since I could do smaller areas at a time versus one large sheet. 

Once I had the order laid out on the floor next to my wall, I used a few pieces of painter’s tape to hang them on the wall to figure out the perfect spacing. The sheets were very light, so I only ended up needing two small pieces at the top of each tree to hold them onto the wall. Thankfully, the painter’s tape came off easily too, because I did have to change the spacing a few times before I got it to look perfect on the wall.

With the trees in place, the next step was to actually adhere the decal to the wall. Per the instructions from Innovative Stencils, I added a horizontal piece of painter’s tape to each tree to hold it in place so I could work on one half of the stencil at a time. I worked from the top down in adhering the decal to the wall because I wanted to make sure that I had a perfect match at the seam of the wall and the ceiling and the leftovers would be towards the bottom. You may decide to work from the bottom of your stencil towards the top, depending on where most of the detail in the stencil lays. For the Birch Tree Vinyl Decal, most of the detail is at the top of each tree, so that’s the part that I wanted to keep in tact. You should also be aware that since my walls are divided by chair rail, I ordered the 5’ version of this stencil, and it was just a little too long for my space, but I would much rather have extra than not enough, wouldn’t you? Innovative Stencils has many different sizes for their vinyl decals, so make sure you measure your space and select the correct size decal when ordering.

Starting from the top, begin peeling the paper backing off of the backside of the decal. When you get to the point where your horizontal piece of tape is, carefully cut the paper backing away from the rest of the decal. Be sure not to cut the transfer paper or the decal itself.

Using a credit card, or in my case, a rewards card from a store that is going out of business (grrrr), I flattened the decal onto the wall, starting from the horizontal tape and working upwards towards the ceiling, smoothing from the middle to the sides. Be sure to work with small areas at a time, as you don’t want any air bubbles between the decal and the wall. If you do end up with air bubbles, wait until after the decal is completely up on the wall to try to fix them. Use the corner of your application card to move the bubbles towards the edge of the decal, and once they have been squeezed out, they will disappear for good. Don’t try to peel the decal off of the wall to fix the bubbles – you will risk stretching and warping the decal and it likely won’t stick to the wall again, as you will lose adhesive from pulling on it.

When you reach the top of the decal, make sure that you have pressed it up against and into the corner of your surface, be it the ceiling or a piece of molding. Once you have the top part adhered, it will be time to do the bottom.

Take off the horizontal piece of tape that was holding the decal onto the wall, and peel off the paper backing from the bottom of the decal. Repeat the process that you used for adhering the top part of the decal. 

After you have pressed the decals firmly onto your wall space, you are ready to remove the transfer paper. If you ended up with any overhang on the edges, like I did, you’ll want to cut that using something sharp, like a razor blade, a box cutter, or an X-Acto Knife. 

Once you have the edges trimmed, remove those pieces, and then starting from the top of your decal, gently peel back a corner of the transfer paper. Peel the transfer paper across the top, and then work your way down the length of the decal, folding the paper onto itself as you go. Remember to peel slowly and make sure that your decal is staying on the wall as you peel away the transfer paper. If it’s not sticking to the wall, use your application card to press the transfer paper back onto the decal to get the decal to stick better onto the surface of your wall. 

If you have more than one decal or different sections of one decal, repeat this step for the remaining pieces of transfer paper, and then when you are finished, stand back and admire your work.

All in all, the installation of this decal took me less than an hour working by myself. It was pain-free and not agonizing at all. In fact, once I had done a few of the sections of my decal, I had a routine set and I was able to do the second half of the tree application in less time than the first half. Innovative Stencils truly has created a great product, and I’m excited to see what other decals and stencils I could use in my home where walls may be too big for other art prints.

I am so happy to finally have this up on the wall, and Dylan and I are going to start working on putting some additional furniture into the room this week. I can't wait to get this room put together and then be ready to have guests spend the night!

Have you ever used a vinyl decal in your home? Has this post changed your mind about some of the options available?

Please Note: In exchange for a review of their product, I was able to purchase the Birch Tree Vinyl Decal free of charge from Innovative Stencils. All opinions are my own and are completely honest. I would recommend this company to anyone looking for a vinyl decal or stencil. I would like to thank Innovative Stencils for allowing me to review their product.

Flash Sale Friday: It's Spring Outside

It's finally back...

Each week, I will be featuring some of the week's best picks from my favorite Flash Sale sites and creating a room inspiration board for all of you to enjoy!  If you have a room that needs decorating and you are looking for some inspiration, feel free to email me what you are looking for, and I'll see what I can come up with for you, and you will be featured in a future Flash Sale Friday post!

If you would like to become a member to one of the sites featured in this Flash Sale Friday post, feel free to create an account from the links I have provided below.

55 Downing Street
Beyond the Rack

One Kings Lane

Joss & Main
Hautelook

Rue La La
HomeSav
MyHabit
Wayfair
Ideeli
Gilt

Fab

In honor of it finally being Spring around here, at least according to the calendar, I've compiled some bright, fun pieces for your outdoor space. If you're anything like me, you can't wait to have a nice cold drink outside, hearing the birds chirp and feeling the warm sun against your skin. So, while this may be just a bit of a tease since we still have a ways to go before that can happen without a winter jacket, I just couldn't stand the dreariness any longer.

1. Feizy Sargasso II Hand-Tufted Rug via Rue La La  2. Rachael Set of Two Tall Orange Lantern Candleholders via 55 Downing Street  3. Fortress Outdoor Table Lamp via Rue La La  4. Manhattan Tabletop Fireplace via Gilt  5. Sutton Tabletop Gel Can Fireplace via Gilt  6. Cantilever Umbrella in Yellow via One Kings Lane  7. Gigante Family Size Hammock via Rue La La   8. Moss in Pot via One Kings Lane  9. Mocha Finish Square Flame Heater via Gilt  10. Ojai Three-Piece Chaise in Espresso and White via One Kings Lane  11. Rio Love Seat via One Kings Lane  12. Succulent in Sugar Planter via One Kings Lane  13. Brooklyn Outdoor String Lights Kit via One Kings Lane  14. Brianna Sun Lounger with Arms via One Kings Lane  15. Set of Two Square Planters via MyHabit  16. Suze Sectional Set via Gilt  

All the bright colors, and the wicker furniture - I love it all! Especially that hammock! Wouldn't it be awesome to be able to swing in that in your backyard?

What's your favorite piece? Do you have outdoor furniture you can't wait to put outside and enjoy?

Please Note: All of the images in this post have been used with permission. Images were not modified or altered to fit in this inspiration board. Flash Sale invitation links may provide me with rewards if items are purchased by a new member.

Flash Sale Friday: Pink, Purple, and Red

It's time for another...

Each week, I will be featuring some of the week's best picks from my favorite Flash Sale sites and creating a room inspiration board for all of you to enjoy!  If you have a room that needs decorating and you are looking for some inspiration, feel free to email me what you are looking for, and I'll see what I can come up with for you, and you will be featured in a future Flash Sale Friday post!

If you would like to become a member to one of the sites featured in this Flash Sale Friday post, feel free to create an account from the links I have provided below.

55 Downing Street
Beyond the Rack

One Kings Lane

Joss & Main
Hautelook

Rue La La
HomeSav
MyHabit
Wayfair
Ideeli
Gilt

Fab

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope that you are all dressed up in your pinks, purples, and reds, and that you enjoy eating candy, going out to dinner, and spending time with those you love.  Even though it may be a little later to decorate for the holiday, I figured it was still perfect for me to find some great home decor items for your home that are inspired by Valentine's Day. And while altogether these items may seem very seasonal, individually, they could be used in your home year round!

1. Damask Stripe Sheet Set via Ideeli  2. Callas Tray via Joss & Main  3. Torino Madrid Pillow in Fuschia via Gilt  4. Moroccan Pouf in Magenta via One Kings Lane  5. Broksonic Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier and Diffuser via Gilt  6. Marjorie Console in Red via One Kings Lane  7. Three-Piece Vivianne Canister Set via Joss & Main  8. Avril Purple Storage Bench via 55 Downing Street  9. Terraza Rug in Scarlet via One Kings Lane  10. Herringbone Alpaca Throw in Hot Pink via One Kings Lane  11. Watercolor Dots Berry Duvet Cover via Joss & Main  12. Radiant Orchid Apothecary Table Lamp via 55 Downing Street

Is Valentine's Day one of those holidays that you tend to skip over in your home decor? If not, how do you decorate for the holiday? Any favorite candies?

Please Note: All of the images in this post have been used with permission. Images were not modified or altered to fit in this inspiration board. Flash Sale invitation links may provide me with rewards if items are purchased by a new member.

DIY: Sunburst Mirror Clock

It's finally done!

Over the weekend, I finished up a project that I was so excited to make - I was finally able to get our sunburst clock up on the wall!  You may remember this clock from the Family Room design plan, and I believe that I told you that it was inspired by some mid-century style mirrors that I had come across. I have seen some people recreate the mirrors, but I wanted to take it one step further and make mine into a clock.  We used to have a clock up on that wall, but the style matched my parents furniture more than it matches ours, so we took it down when we were prepping the walls for painting.  Ever since then, you know, back in December, we have constantly been looking at that wall for the time, so we knew that we had to get a clock back up there soon.

Now, this project wasn't very difficult, but there were a lot of steps, so this post will almost be picture overload. Sorry, I'm not sorry! 

The first thing that I did was decide how large I wanted the clock to be.  I wanted it to be a statement piece on that large purple wall, so I thought that three feet in diameter would be perfect. I bought a 12" craft mirror from Hobby Lobby, as I didn't want something expensive since I would be gluing things to it and drilling a hole in the center.  

I also picked up some wooden dowels in two different diameters, so that the sunburst clock had some depth. I chose to go with 1/4" and 3/8" diameters, and bought the 4' dowels so I could get as many sticks out of each dowel as possible.  Using just a wire cutter, although you could use a hack saw too, I cut the dowels into lengths of 13", 12", and 11" making sure I had the same amount of each length and width.  I chose the lengths because I wanted the dowels to extend to a maximum of 12" from the side of the mirror, and I needed approximately 1" for securing the dowel to the backside of the mirror.  Make sure that you take that into consideration when cutting your lengths, as you don't want to end up with a smaller size clock than you anticipated.

After cutting the dowels, lay out the dowels in a pattern of your choice, keeping in mind that you may have some that are both different sizes and thicknesses. I started with one of the dowels and placed each one of those in a space on the outside of the mirror. I then followed that by a different size dowel until I used all of the sticks in a consistent pattern around the mirror.  I didn't follow any of the directions that others have online, and only did what I liked, so you should do what you feel looks good. 

Once all of my dowels were in place, I did, however, do some simple calculations to figure out how much space I should have between each dowel. Using the diameter of the mirror, 12", I used a circumference calculator online to determine that I was working with 37.67" and then divided that by 30, which is the number of dowels I had, and got 1.25" between each one. If you want to be picky about placement, like me, you can do these same calculations, but if you don't want to, you can always just eye it. 

After being satisfied with how the clock looked, I wrote down the pattern of the dowels, then I took them down into the basement to my spray painting station and coated them with some silver metallic spray paint. Don't forget that the best method of spray painting is in light layers and not thick coats, so you may want to put three or more layers of spray paint on the dowels in order to get them evenly covered.

While I was waiting for the dowels to dry between layers of spray paint, I started to prep for drilling the hole in the center of my mirror for the clock mechanism.  First, in order to protect the glass surface of your mirror, prop it up on a soft, but raised item. As you can see in the photos below, I used some cleaning cloths I had and supported the mirror on them, while at the same time, leaving the center unsupported, that way the drill bit wouldn't hit the towels or the work surface when it finally cut through the glass. 

Without having the proper tools to find the center of my mirror, I used a technique I found online, where you draw three lines of equal length that intersect with two edges of the circle, then draw a line perpendicular to that first one at the center point of the original line.  The perpendicular lines will intersect each other at the center spot of your circle, or in this case, your mirror. Make sure to do this on the back of the mirror, as you likely won't have much success drawing on the front side without using a pen or marker that would leave permanent marks.

You may remember that I purchased a glass drill bit, and I showed you how to drill a hole in a wine bottle for all of those neat projects you may have in mind.  I used my 1/2" drill bit for this project since the post of my clock mechanism was slightly larger than the 1/4" bit that I also own.

Applying a medium amount of pressure, I began drilling a hole in the center of the mirror.  Make sure that your drill is is a level position and don't apply too much pressure, as you don't want your mirror to shatter. Once you have an indentation made in the back of the mirror, begin adding a few drops of water to the surface of the mirror where the drill bit is making the hole. This will help the glass drill smoothly instead of chipping or cracking when you are drilling. If the water begins to dry out, you should continue to add more, just a few drops at a time.  

Continue drilling into the back of the mirror, gradually adding pressure so you eventually get the size hole you need for the post of the clock mechanism. This may take up to a half hour, depending on how thick your mirror is, how sharp your glass bit is, and how much pressure you are applying when drilling. Once the hole fits the clock mechanism, you can drill slightly on the front side of the mirror just to make sure that the hole is smooth and free of sharp glass shards, but this step is optional, and slightly chancy since the clock mechanism will likely cover any areas in question. 

Once you are done drilling, you are ready to attach the smaller mirrors to the spray painted dowels. I bought small mirrors that were 1/2", 3/4", and 1" in diameter just to add some depth to the dowels.  I laid out the dowels in the pattern that I determined earlier, and then placed the small mirrors below the dowels in order to determine the pattern for those.  

Once you have your layout finished, attach the small mirrors to the dowels. I used Gorilla Glue to do this, but I didn't realize how much the glue bubbles and expands, so if you use this, proceed with caution, because you might end up with some of the mirrors stuck to your work surface, or glue stuck to the front side of the mirrors. If you are looking for alternative adhesives, try silicone, and even though I haven't tried it, hot glue from a glue gun may also work. For actually attaching them I found it easiest to place the small mirror face down, put a small drop of glue on the back, and then place the dowel on top. This allowed me to move the dowels as the glue was drying, in case they began to slide off off center. 

After the glue dries, you are ready to attach the dowels to the back side of the large mirror. Since I struggled with the Gorilla Glue, I used silicone for this step. To make sure that I had the spacing of the dowels set correctly, I placed them all on the back of the mirror, leaving an inch on the back side of the mirror, and was able to move them around until I had an even placement of 1.25" between each one. Once they were in place, I then used the silicone tube in the caulk gun and placed a thick bead of silicone over the dowels.

Using a small craft paint brush, I spread the silicone around each of the dowels so they would be secured onto the mirror. In the picture below, you can see how the top left corner has just the bead of silicone over the dowels, where the rest of the back of the mirror already shows the silicone spread around the base of each stick.  

Let the silicone dry and once you are confident that the dowels are secure in place, you can attach the clock mechanism. Each mechanism will probably be slightly different than the other, but mine was very simple. 

Slide the post through the hole you drilled in the mirror, then on the part that shows through the front side of the mirror attach the washer and the nut and twist it until it's tight. Don't over-tighten the nut, because you don't want to crack the mirror after you have gotten this far! 

Finally, attach the clock hands, and if your mechanism came with one, pop on the little cap that keeps the clock hands on the post.  

Lastly, clean off the front sides of all the mirrors with your favorite glass cleaner, and then hang your masterpiece up on the wall!! 

Ta-da! I am very happy with the way that this project came out, however there are a few things I think I would have liked to change. It turns out that these clock hands are just a little too small for the size of the clock face, so it does look a little strange.  Maybe I will try to find some different ones, because changing out the clock mechanism should be easy as long as the post hole can remain the same size.  The other thing that kind of irks me is how small the clock looks on the wall! I can't believe that a clock with a three foot diameter could look so small. I thought that would be plenty big enough, but it does look kind of lost up there. Maybe this is just an opportunity to put some picture frames with my favorite digital art prints in them on each side of it.


What are your thoughts? Do you love this clock? Does this make you want to create your own in your own style? Should I put pictures on either side to help the wall feel fuller?

Flash Sale Friday: Olympic Rings and Round Things

It's time for another...

Each week, I will be featuring some of the week's best picks from my favorite Flash Sale sites and creating a room inspiration board for all of you to enjoy!  If you have a room that needs decorating and you are looking for some inspiration, feel free to email me what you are looking for, and I'll see what I can come up with for you, and you will be featured in a future Flash Sale Friday post!

If you would like to become a member to one of the sites featured in this Flash Sale Friday post, feel free to create an account from the links I have provided below.

55 Downing Street
Beyond the Rack

One Kings Lane

Joss & Main
Hautelook

Rue La La
HomeSav
MyHabit
Wayfair
Ideeli
Gilt

Fab

If you couldn't already tell by the title of this week's Flash Sale Friday, Rhody Life is celebrating the Olympics! Dylan and I are so excited that the Winter Olympics have finally started, and we are really looking forward to watching tonight's Opening Ceremonies.  Our favorite event to watch is Curling - not something that you see every day, or something that is readily available to play, but it's such an interesting sport to watch. 

So, in honor of the Winter Olympics, this Flash Sale Friday is based loosely on the Olympic Rings - round things in the colors of the rings.  Most of the logos of the Olympic rings are shown in Gold or White, but the actual colors of the rings are Yellow, Green, Blue, Red, and Black.  So, without any more hesitation or rambling about Curling, here are this week's items!

1. Wild Honey Candle via Gilt  2. Set of 3 Metal Trays via Gilt  3. Interlude Lapis Oval Platter via One Kings Lane  4. Subatomic Ceiling Lamp via Gilt  5. Set of 3 Metal Baskets via Gilt
6. Sorano Table Lamp in Green via Joss & Main  7. Martine Storage Ottoman via Joss & Main
8. Louisa Sea Green Round Accent Table via 55 Downing Street  9. Lenox Kobenstyle Chili Red Casserole Dish via Hautelook  10. Murano Bowl in Blue via One Kings Lane  11. Kraven Round Black Accent Table via 55 Downing Street  12. Print Pouf in Brick Red via Hautelook  13. Europe2You Green Mason Jar via MyHabit  14. Crimson Lacquer Mirror via One Kings Lane  15. Oxford Rug in Navy via Joss & Main  16. Round Spindle Table in Muted Yellow via Beyond the Rack  17. Leff Amsterdam Glass Arabic Clock via MyHabit

Yes, I do know that not all of these things are round, like the rug, for example, but the pattern on it is round, so it plays along with this week's theme.  I know, it's kind of a stretch, but stay with me please!  You know I'm not afraid of color, so this post really speaks to me. Plus, it can also inspire you to decorate your home a little bit for this once-every-four-year-event (or two if you count Summer Olympics!)! 

Do you have any of the five colors of the Olympic Rings in your home? Which one is your favorite to decorate with? What is your favorite Winter Olympic Event?

Please Note: All of the images in this post have been used with permission. Images were not modified or altered to fit in this inspiration board. Flash Sale invitation links may provide me with rewards if items are purchased by a new member.