tray chic...(it's a pun)

I love DIY.  But sometimes, things call for a little BITD (bring it to Dad).  I will fully admit that the following project was only partially my handy work and give a big shout out to my pops!

A bit of backstory for this project - it all started when I left my favourite small black tray in Victoria (*sniff).  It was perfect for coralling small objects that just clutter up a surface into a neat little package.

In fact, I love trays for that exact reason, where you can display knick knacks without looking like a crazy knick knack lady (it's all about appearances, people).

Enter this inspiration.  Who knew making one could be so easy?

So I texted dad (don't dads love it when their little girl needs their help?  Especially with things they spend all week doing, on their day off?) to see if he had any scrap wood laying around that might do the trick.  Well, it went from a simple and cheap slap-together project, to trays made out of solid maple and oak with perfectly mitered corners.  But did I mention I learned how to use power tools?  Ok, maybe I posed for a few pictures near the power tools and let dad do most of the work.  But I believe that saws deserve respect.  Especially after that safety talk with dad.  Yikes.

Keeping my hands well away from the blade

Papa making some measurements

The oak tray

 

The maple tray in all it's glory, photo taken by Amy Kroeker

Next step: choose the finish.  I'm thinking of staining the oak one greyish, and the maple one I gave to my sister who will leave it natural and probably seal it with some mineral wax.

Lesson of the day - take advantage of people who love you.  Just kidding, I never do that...

Ash out!

bedroom on a budget.

Friends!

My fiancé and I moved into a charming little house about six months ago. The home is in great condition and has many wonderful features. However, I wasn’t feeling the style chosen by the previous owners. For about $500, I managed to completely change our bedroom by giving it a coat of fresh paint and limiting the amount of furniture in the small space.

 

This is how the room looked when we bought the house. It is clean and bright, but I was not a fan of the yellow toned, creamy walls. Also, with limited square footage, a piece of furniture on every wall, really made the room appear smaller.

 

 

Because we chose to paint the rest of the house an off white, I thought it would be good to paint our room a dark colour – this is Behr Amazon Stone. To keep things under budget, I purchased our bed linens and bookshelf from Ikea; the coverlet, throw pillows, lamps and mirrors from Homesense and our headboard from homedepot.com. Just changing your wall color and bedspread can make a big difference, without breaking the bank!

I’m looking forward to sharing the rest of my budget home makeover with you!

Loves ya,

Jordyn

art, tea and music (in no particular order)

It was one of those afternoons - the sun was shining and birds were chirping.  I made a cup of the most amazing decaf tea (Stash Vanilla Nut Creme - drink and love) and had some great music playing such as this, this and this (of course, you've gots to have some soul).

Naturally, the atmosphere lead to some creativity...

I was originally thinking about making an ikat painting to incorporate into a gallery wall, but turns out I didn't have a stretched canvas :(  However, I did have some loose canvas fabric and an empty beddside picture frame.  Thanks to my lack of planning, I have now completed my first project I posted!  Lemons = lemonade.

The key to having the colours run for the true ikat look is to have the canvas slightly damp

Sorry 'bout the glare...

I was stoked on my newly finished project and beaming with pride.  Until I showed a friend.  Her first words were "is that homemade?" I said yes.  She replied "I can tell".  I felt the need to justify and defend my creation, but I know it's not everyone's taste.  And that's ok.  Even on here, I want to say that it's not intended to be perfect and defend it.



Yes, it's homemade

Lesson of the day - if you love it, go with it.  As Julia Child would say "no apologies!"

Ash out!