Decorating With What You Already Have

This weekend I am redecorating by using what I already have! My wood floor project is now complete so I wanted to rearrange some furniture. I moved my hutch into the dining room and decided to change it's purpose by using it for things I use in the kitchen instead of a storage unit - haha! (I'm still working on a post for that part). However, the end result in my living room was that I had an empty wall. I decided to use an old table that belonged to my great-grandma as my starting point. Then I found an old picture in a closet that belonged to my grandma, so I painted the frame with some cream colored paint and hung that over the table. I grabbed a pink, shabby chic lamp from the "princess room", a flower arrangement from another bedroom (I painted the vase to match the frame of the picture), added grandma's doily, and a framed family picture. I had an old oak coat rack that belonged to my dad so I hung some vintage hats that belonged to my grandma, a vintage fur jacket that belonged to Great-Aunt, tucked some vintage gloves in the pocket, and moved that next to the table. I love how it turned out and the best part is that I get to display some of my favorite family stuff and it didn't cost any money. So before you go shopping, look around and see what you already have in your house and start moving it around for a new look. Happy creativity all!

 Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

Decorating with Vintage Jewelry

This is the perfect DIY project to display your vintage jewelry rather than keep it in a box. For me, it was the perfect accent piece to my shabby chic living room. I bought an old picture frame at a garage sale for a quarter and painted it with cream colored paint and a little water. I still had my sister's bridesmaid dress from my wedding, so I cut some swatches of pink material and lace from that and used it as my background for my jewelry. I did not use any glue for my project because I wanted to preserve the integrity of the jewelry.
Here are my steps to complete my DIY jewelry project:

1. If needed, paint the picture frame and let it dry.
2. Cut material and lace to fit the frame and add almost 3 inches to each side.
3. Place the frame painted side down and place the jewelry over the back of the frame, you won't need the glass if your frame has it.
4. Place the lace over the top of the jewelry.
5. Place the material over the lace.
6. Place some pieces of batting over the material, enough to cover the entire back.
7. Place the cardboard back over the top of the batting, press down slightly, and press the metal clips on the frame over the cardboard.
8. Trim the excess material from the edges of the frame in the back.
9. Turn your frame over and that's it! You now have beautifully framed vintage jewelry!

 Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

Organizing the Laundry Room

My laundry room is very compact and I love it! It is easy to keep clean because it is a smaller space. I have a cabinet, a shower curtain rod for hanging clothes, a sink, and I stacked my washer and dryer so everything is within reach. When we were planning the room, I knew I would not need a space to fold my clothes because I like to fold the clothes where I store them, which is mostly in the master bedroom or bathroom. So I opted for more living space rather than laundry room space. What I have learned over the past year on my organizing journey is that when you are dealing with a small space it is essential to keep them organized and don't let clutter accumulate.
This is how I organized my laundry room space. On the bottom shelf that is easy to reach, I keep my homemade laundry soap (recipe on an earlier post) and some of the ingredients to make it, homemade fabric softener (vinegar and water) in a spray bottle, stain remover (Fels-Naptha), Dr. Bronner's liquid castile and bar soap, and white vinegar. The second shelf is used for borax, washing soda, baking soda, a basket of containers for my homemade foaming soap (Dr. Bronner's, tea tree oil, and water), and a few extra rags. The top shelf is for those items I don't use on a consistent basis such as my iron (yuck), my ironing cloth, and my extra glass vases. Hope you get some ideas to make your laundry life more simple!

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

Repurposing Wooden Crates

My sister gave me some vintage Christmas ornaments that came in these cool wooden crates, so rather than store them in a closet somewhere until Christmas, I decided to use them for decorating.  I stacked them, along with my dad's cowboy boots that I stuck some dried wheat and grass into next to my fireplace.  They would also make a cute end table.  Look around and see what you could use in another way and share your re-purposing ideas with us!


~Simply Angie