Category Archives: home decor

DIY Laundry Room Makeover

Today, we are going to focus on our DIY laundry room makeover. The laundry room is usually a space that is overlooked. However, recently it has become a new trend to glam up your laundry room. I mean maybe it will make you WANT to do the laundry? Maybe…

So, here is a little before picture to give you a reference to where we began:

The first place I started was to remove all of the things on the shelf. I painted part of the shelf with some black paint that I had from another project. I didn’t want to paint the whole shelf because I wanted to keep up with the black and white theme. Next, I removed the dryer so I could get in there to start the vinyl tiles.

These are the floor tiles I purchased from Home Depot. However, I have seen them all over the place (Hobby Lobby, Floor & Decor, Amazon etc.) The price ranges from $11-$15 per box of 10 tiles. For this project, I used 5 boxes. This will depend on the size of your wall, obviously.

You will need a few things to start on the vinyl floor tiles: straight edge knife, tape measurer, tile adhesive, leveler, and a pencil or marker.

So, these floor tiles are peel and stick. However, I would recommend using the tile adhesive since it is going up the wall (*gravity). You don’t need to cover every inch of the tile for it to stick. I just used an applicator tool and put globs every now and then.

I started from the bottom and now we are here (Did the song pop up in your head? LOL) But seriously, I started from the bottom and went up to the top. It worked out perfectly where I didn’t need to make any cuts (Lucky!). My recommendation is to start from the top though, because most likely you will need to make a cut at the bottom.

How to make a cut: Step 1- Measure the space Step 2- Use your leveler and pencil and mark where you need to cut Step 3- Make your cut with your straight edge knife Step 4- Bend the tile in half to break off the unwanted piece

It’s pretty easy to make a cut on these tiles. You don’t need fancy equipment. However, you will have areas that will have weird cuts (outlets, etc) so I do have a trick for you.

How to make special cuts: Step 1- Take a tile and cut off the extra part of the backing to make the perfect 12X12 size Step 2- peel the backing off and take the backing and tape it to the wall where the tile will go Step 3- trace the special cut Step 4 – remove the backing from the wall and cut out the traced area Step 5- Place it on top of the tile (make sure it is on there exactly Step 6 – trace opening on tile Step 7 – cut out traced area

This is one of the easiest makeovers I have done. It took me almost 4 hours. I did do the tiles up to the ceiling. If you look close you can see that my ceiling isn’t straight. So, I do have a little gap since I stayed straight with my tiles. But you can barely notice it since I put baskets up there (Target). The rest is just decorations from Hobby Lobby.

https://www.hobbylobby.com/Home-Decor-Frames/Mirrors-Wall-Decor/Quote-Wall-Art/Laundry-Co-Metal-Sign/p/80903058

The table came from Hobby Lobby and was 40% off! Love that place.

https://www.hobbylobby.com/Home-Decor-Frames/Furniture/Tables/Antique-White-Wood-Tray-Table/p/80810451

The baskets came from Target. I used the big ones for the top shelf and the smaller one on the table.

https://www.target.com/p/felt-basket-with-stitching-project-62/-/A-84281826?preselect=53775679#lnk=sametab

DIY Board & Batten Accent Wall

The DIY board and batten wall is one of the first things that I saw on Pinterest that I wanted to try. I feel lucky that I have a husband that can help me with my crazy DIY projects. I just feel like board and batten gives the house a little character where most is lacking. It’s a quick way to create some style on a budget if you are doing it yourself.

LET’S TALK COST & MATERIALS

  1. White wood common board – in 2 sizes (1X4X8) $6.80 X 6 = $40.8 and (1X4X10) $8.67 X 7 = $60.69
  2. Caulk – $8.56
  3. Paint – Benjamin Moore Temptation 1 gallon = $40
  4. Nails – 18GA Brad nails 1-1/4″ for vertical pieces $6.98 & 18GA Brad nails 2″ for stud pieces $7.48 = $14.46

TOTAL= $164.51 (Obvi this depends on how big your wall is and that you already have a saw and nail gun)

Step 1. Mark your studs with tape. We need to know where the studs are for the horizontal pieces. Normal stud spacing is around 16 inches. However, don’t rely on that measurement as they can vary.

Step 2. Attach your horizontal pieces. This will be easier with 2 people. Where someone can hold the wood and the other can use the nail gun. We spaced ours 2 feet apart. Our first piece was flush with the ceiling then worked our way down to the baseboard. Make sure you nail it into the stud for these pieces. We also used a leveler to make sure our board was straight before nailing it to the wall.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-in-x-4-in-x-8-ft-Premium-Kiln-Dried-Square-Edge-Whitewood-Common-Board-914681/100023465

Step 3. Attach your vertical pieces. Start at the corner and measure 2 feet in-between to the next board. For these boards you can use the shorter nails as they don’t need to go into the stud.

Step 4. Caulk the gaps in-between the board and the wall and the adjoining board pieces to give it a cohesive look. Make sure not to leave globs behind. I usually do a finger sweep along the caulk to help smooth it out.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/FINISHED-ELEGANCE-10-1-oz-Caulk-Tube-for-Moulding-109438/204234849

Step 5. Paint the wall and boards. Our wall was already painted the color we wanted so it was so much easier to finish. So, I would recommend painting the wall first then doing the accent pieces.

https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/color-overview/find-your-color/color/1609/temptation?color=1609

FINISHED! This DIY board and batten accent wall project wasn’t that hard and only took us 2 days but really could of been done in a day if we would of had more free time our first day. I hope you found this helpful. Happy DIYing!

DIY Board and Batten Accent Wall

DIY Staircase Remodel

In my house, the staircase is the first thing you see when you come in. My stairs wasn’t in bad shape to begin with which was nice. However, I wanted something bold. I wanted to create a “WOW factor” if you will. Something that makes you say, “Dang that’s different and cool!” So, one day I was walking in Home Depot and I saw these vinyl peel and stick floor tiles. Then it was like a light bulb went off. It was a super easy, durable (and cheap) option.

LET’S TALK PRICE & MATERIALS

  1. Vinyl floor tiles – $15/box of 10 tiles X 5 = $75
  2. Utility knife – $8
  3. Tape measurer – $5 (I already had)
  4. Vinyl floor adhesive – $15
  5. 1 quart of black paint = $22

TOTAL = $125

My stairs already had wood treads and iron balusters, so an update wasn’t super needed. However, I’m so in love with the way this turned out. Also, it was super easy! 🙂

Step 1. Clean the stairs. Make sure all the dust and debris is all gone.

Step 2. Prep your area. I have painted so much now that I don’t need to tape off areas. I’m pretty good with keeping it in the lines. But if you need to use masking tape go ahead and mask off areas that don’t need paint.

Step 3. Paint the stair railings and posts. I did 2 coats. I used Behr paint color called Limousine Leather in the satin finish. I recommend getting a satin or gloss finish since this is a high traffic area. Matte paints chip easier.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-MARQUEE-1-qt-MQ5-05-Limousine-Leather-One-Coat-Hide-Satin-Enamel-Interior-Paint-Primer-745304/310991614

Step 4. Applying the vinyl floor tiles. First thing you want to do is measure the height of your stairs. For my stairs, it took 4 tiles per step. I started right to left. You want to make sure you do each step in the same direction and pay attention to how the design goes. Use your measure tape and mark the spot on tile. Then cut the tile with your utility knife. I used a leveler to make sure it was straight and level. You will make the cut then bend the tile so it pops into 2 pieces.

Step 5. Apply the adhesive. So these tiles already have adhesive backing. However, these tiles are standing up and not laying down on the floor. So, to make sure gravity doesn’t take it you will apply vinyl adhesive.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Roberts-8-oz-Vinyl-Seam-Sealer-for-Sheet-Flooring-7500-8/307565677

AND THAT’S IT FOLKS! It is super easy and affordable! Here is a little tip though. After I cut my first piece I kept it to use as a guide for my next piece so I didn’t have to measure height for every floor tile. I would lay it on top of new piece so I knew where to cut also it made sure it was straight every time. I’m so in love with it! I feel like it brings so much style to the space and gives a great first impression when you walk into my house. 🙂

DIY Entryway Storage Area

Welcome home! Unfortunately, the first thing my kids (and husband) do when they get home is kick off their shoes and throw them everywhere. It usually ends up having shoes all over my house. It’s bad. Tripping over shoes happens all the time. So, before someone gets hurt in the house I decided to build this welcome area to help organize our things: it acts as a coat rack, purse holder, hats, and shoes. I didn’t have enough room in my foyer for a table or bench. So, I had to get creative.

LET’S TALK COST & MATERIALS

  1. Wood – (3) 1X4 $6 & (3) 1X6 $8 = $42
  2. Caulk -$5
  3. Hooks – $3/hook X 5 = $15
  4. Baskets – $12/basket X4 = $48
  5. Paint – (I already had) quart of paint roughly $15
  6. Welcome sign – $15 Hobby Lobby

Total = $140

First of all, I didn’t mention that you will need a miter saw or table saw (and a nail gun) to cut the wood and nail it to the wall. If not you can go to Home Depot with your measurements and request for them to cut your wood for you. Yeah! That’s pretty nice. The good thing about this project is that it isn’t that big. So, you could potentially get all of your cuts done at Home Depot. 🙂

Depending on how wide your wall is depends on how many vertical rows you would like to do. My space was pretty small so I only ended up needing 2 vertical pieces.

Step 1. Set your bottom piece. This will be one of the 1X6 pieces. Make it flush with the wall and the baseboards go all the way to the edge of the corner. After you have made your cuts then you will nail it to the wall with your nail gun. It is best if you can nail it into the stud to make it more sturdy.

Step 2: Set your vertical pieces (1X4). Since I only had 2 pieces, it made it easy to figure out the spacing. I just measure the width of the wall and separated it into 3 sections. So, I just had to have it the same spacing on the ends. On my wall it ended up 7″ on each side.

Step 3. Set your middle piece and top piece (1X6). You can choose how low or high your middle piece will be. It really depends on if you are doing the basket storage at the bottom or not. I set mine high since I knew I wanted shoe storage at the bottom. I basically just wanted enough room for my welcome sign.

Step 4. Set the little vertical pieces that goes in between the middle and top.

Step 5. Set the shelf. Lay one of the 1X6 pieces flat and nail into the wall. Then cut the little piece under the shelf to help for support and aesthetics.

Step 6. Caulk and paint. You will want to fill the gaps in between the wall and the wood with caulk to make the project look more complete. Once the caulk has set and dried. I let it dry overnight. The next day I completed it by painting everything with 2 coats of white paint.

Step 7. Attach the hooks and welcome sign. I used 5 hooks and evenly separated them. The welcome sign I bought at Hobby Lobby with a 50% off coupon. I just love that place!

https://www.hobbylobby.com/Home-Decor-Frames/Mirrors-Wall-Decor/Word-Wall-Art/Black-Welcome-Wood-Wall-Decor/p/80848244

Step 8. Attach the baskets. I bought these baskets at Ikea for pretty cheap. I liked that they had some dividing inserts you could add to it if your wanted to. I used 2 screws per basket and made sure to go into the middle of the wood. If you go to close to the end you do run the risk of the wood splitting.

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/pleja-wire-basket-with-handle-black-20348047/

And that’s it folks! Now you have a great entryway spot! I hope this helps keep you organized and gives your foyer a little style. 🙂

How to Mortar Wash Your Fireplace

Have you heard the term “Mortar wash?” or “German Smear?” (thanks to Joanna Gaines) This term basically means slathering your fireplace with mortar to give it texture and depth. Also, makes your fireplace have a cozier look and it really gives your home a cottage feel. It’s actually pretty simple too!

LET’S TALK COST & MATERIALS

  1. Thin Set Mortar – $20.98
  2. Bucket – $10 (I already had)
  3. Sponge -$5 (I already had)
  4. Gloves – $5 (I already had)
  5. Flexible Putty Knife – $5

Total = roughly $45 (SUPER CHEAP)

I bought already mixed thin set white mortar at Home Depot for around $20. You can buy the powder version and mix it yourself if you have the materials and if you have a bigger project.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Custom-Building-Products-SimpleSet-1-Gal-14-25-lbs-White-Pre-Mixed-Thin-Set-Mortar-STTSW1/100678075

Step 1. Get a damp cloth and wipe your fireplace down to get dust and debris removed.

Step 2. Get your bucket and a tarp if you have it to protect your floors. The tarp is nice because it is water resistant. This project can get a little messy at times.

Step 3. Apply mortar with putty knife. I feel like the putty knife is the easiest tool to use to apply it. This is the 3rd fireplace that I have done. Others have used the sponge or a towel. Also, remember to put on gloves. I have made the mistake of using my bare hand at times and it dries out your skin REAL BAD!

Step 4. After you put the mortar on (I usually do one or two bricks at a time) I get my sponge and bucket of water and I smooth out the brick. Remember to get into the grooves and completely fill those areas. I usually start there and work towards the brick.

And that’s it folks! Yeah it’s that easy. Keep in mind that you can always add more if you want more coverage. It’s best to be conservative at first if you want to see some of the underlying brick. I actually did that on this project and loved the results.

Also, if anyone was wondering what color that was on the mantle. I painted it with Behr paint color is called Shark Fin.

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY AND HAPPY REMODELING! 🙂