Makeover of Storage Bins!

I am all about organization in my life, so naturally I have tons of storage bins.  I use them for anything from storing cosmetics to tools.  I have a set of storage bins that I purchased at two different times from Dollar General for $3 a piece.  I would like to display them in my bathroom once I move into an apartment, so I decided to give them a much needed makeover. 

Here is the before: 

 
 Not the prettiest thing to look at, right? It just so happens that I found the perfect fabric to cover these bins while browsing at Walmart a few days ago.  You can see it hiding underneath the bins in the above picture.  Today, I went and purchased 2 1/2 yds. of the lovely floral print, and I got to work. 

I didn't really follow any kind of tutorial, because I have done projects like this before.  Let me tell you, it is a very time consuming process, and I burned myself with my hot glue gun I don't know how many times. The project took me a couple of hours to complete in total because of all the measuring, cutting, and gluing.  So much gluing!  But, the finished product was completely worth it.

Here is the after:

I absolutely love how they turned out, and I am so happy that they are a matching pair now!   There is just something about pretty storage that I just can't get enough of.

 Here is a close up of the front next to a close up of the side: 

Thanks for reading!  I had so much fun doing this project, and I hope you all are working on some fun projects as well.  Happy crafting!  Don't forget to leave me a comment or ask me any questions below.

You can follow me on my Pinterest here:  Owl Enthusiast

Love, 

February's Words to Live By

Monthly, I will be choosing motivational and inspirational quotes to display on my in my blog posts.  All of the graphics will be one hundred percent created by me every time.  So, these posts will still be me sharing something that I have created with you. I love typography, and I hope to come up with some more creative designs in the future. 

I am not quite sure where this quote first originated, but I discovered it while listening to the song "Kill Your Heroes" by Awolnation.  I just love the meaning that is conveyed through this quote in so few words.

So many times in life, I have had to overcome my fears in order to progress and grow as person as well as to make my life better.  In order to truly live and get the most out of life, I strongly believe that you have to have some part of this philosophy instilled in you. 

I can't take all the credit for this wonderful motivational post idea.  I got this idea from a fellow blogger, Louise,  who does a segment on her blog called "Motivational Mondays."  Louise is a lovely Youtuber and blogger, and you can follow her here:

Youtube: Sprinkle of Glitter's Youtube
Blogger: Sprinkle of Glitter's Blog

Thanks for reading, and I hope you are having fun working on creative projects!

Love,

Fabric Covered Cork Board Tutorial!

This is one of my favorite projects to do over and over again.  I don't know what it is, but I just love making fabric covered cork boards.  I started making my own bulletin boards in high school, and the first one I made was very elaborate and time consuming.

Then, my freshman year of college I started making them for all of my friends as gifts.  It just became a therapeutic hobby for me. I even gave a demonstrative speech about how to make a fabric covered cork board in my college speech class.  Let me tell you, it was a pretty kick ass speech!

Over the past few years, I have refined the process, and it now only takes me about 30 minutes—give or take— to create one.  Today, I thought I would share my process and pictures of the one that I have made recently to match my room decor with you.    

You will need:

1. A hot glue gun
2. Plenty of glue sticks
3. A spool of ribbon
4. Several tacks
5. A pretty piece of fabric of your choosing
6. A cork board
7. A pair of scissors 
8. Command strips

After you have gathered your supplies, you are ready to create your own beautiful fabric covered cork board.

• Step 1:  Cut your fabric to size.  Make sure that you leave two inches of slack all the way around, so you can adhere the fabric to the back of the board.  
• Step 2:  Heat up your hot glue gun.  Flip your fabric upside down, and place your cork board upside down on top of the fabric.  Adjust the cork board until it is centered on the piece of fabric.
• Step 3:  Fold the extra two inches of fabric and pin it to the back of the cork board all around the edges.
• Step 4:  Take your hot glue gun and apply a thin layer of glue underneath the folded fabric all the way around. Remove the tacks as you go.

 At this point, you could technically be finished with your fabric covered cork board, or you could have fun and decorate it.  I generally opt for decorating it. 

• Step 5:  Take your ribbon and cut six pieces. (2 pieces long enough to create an x shape across the entire board, and 4 pieces to apply to each corner of the board.)
• Step 6:  Place each piece of ribbon on the board as mentioned above. Tack the ends of the ribbon to the back of the board like you did with the fabric.  
• Step 7:  Remove each tack individually and glue as you go.  
• Step 8:  Take 5 tacks and cut out pieces of fabric large enough to cover the tacks.
• Step 9:  Glue the fabric to the tacks, and apply the tacks to the board.  
• Step 10:  Add pictures or memos.  Attach Command adhesive strips to the back and hang on the wall.  

Here is the finished product:  

 I have made dozens of these over the years, and this one has to be my absolute favorite!  Here is a close up of one of the fabric covered tacks:

I just love all the colors that are incorporated into this fabric.  It has a little bit of bohemian and modern feel to me.  It matches the colors of my current bedspread marvelously.  Also, I have had my eye on it for quite some time.  I spotted it this past summer at Walmart.  There were three beautiful modern bolts that all had the same color scheme. I already used the paisley fabric that compliments this one when I decided to give my mismatched storage boxes a makeover.

You can see this bulletin board in its new home and those storage boxes in this picture:

I just love the way this cork board ties my room decor together. Thanks for reading!  Feel free to leave me comments and ask questions below.  Happy crafting!

Don't forget to follow me on my Pinterest:  Owl Enthusiast

Love,

Here's to Beginings.

Hello!  My name is Stacy, and I am a craftaholic.  I decided to start posting my crafting adventures on this blog, because I would love to have an archive of the before and after processes of each of my projects.  Also, I want to start sharing my projects with others interested in crafts like you. 

I have been very inspired by the shabby chic trend after discovering Pinterest last year.  I just love the idea of taking something old or vintage and sprucing it up to give it a new life. When I was at a local flea market last weekend, I could not resist buying a vintage gold mirror.  It was only $15 which is pretty much a steal for a decent sized mirror. I have been hunting for a somewhat ornate and cheap mirror for a while, so I was thrilled to find this one:

This is not a great picture, because it was taken while the mirror was still in my trunk.  But can't you just see the potential?

Naturally, I wanted to give this mirror a shabby chic makeover.  I have been inspired by many of the ornate mirrors that I have seen on Pinterest such as this gorgeous one:

So, I went to Walmart, and I purchased a bottle of Apple Barrel gloss craft paint in Deep Purple for about $3.  The painting process was definitely a long one! It took about 30mins for each coat to dry, and I ended up having to apply at least 5 coats to cover up the gold.  At first, I thought I had ruined the mirror, because the paint was just going on in streaks—it was barley covering the gold.  But, the more coats I applied; the better it began to look.  The details took the longest to cover, but it was worth all of the effort.  I just love the finished product:

I recently got engaged, and I will be moving into an apartment with my fiancé very soon.  I cannot wait to make this mirror a centerpiece in our bedroom!  This project was definitely worth my $18.

Thanks for reading!  Here are some links to things I discussed throughout this blog:

1. Blue ornate mirror featured from Pinterest: Celebrating Everyday Life
2. Follow me on my Pinterest:  OwlEnthusiast

Love,