Dryer Duct Wreath

I recently saw this mason jar wreath on Pinterest:

Pinterest

I think it looks really cool, but I don't have that many old mason jar lids, nor do I know where to find them.  I've had a "Q" shaped wreath that was covered in moss hanging on the chapel door when we got married that I've wanted to use for a while.  I wanted to do something different with it and this was a great inspiration.  I looked around in the home improvement section of Wal-Mart today and saw a dryer vent hose.  I remembered we had some we didn't use in our laundry room cabinet and got excited.  So, I covered the wreath this afternoon!

This is the wreath I started with:

I had two different dryer ducts we weren't using.  I ended up only using the one on the left. (another project later for the one on the right?)

I cut the duct down the center and pulled it apart at the seams:

Then I wrapped it around the wreath and squeezed it into place.

And here's what I ended up with:

I think I'll add a little something to it for Christmas, but here it is on the door for now:

New Knobs

The pulls on our half bath vanity were nice enough, but nothing special.  So, I've been looking for something unique to use in their place and I've finally found something awesome.  Well, I think they're awesome, you can let me know what you think.

Here's the before:

Here's the after:

Interesting, huh?

I'm pretty excited about them.  Oh, they are old sewing machine attachments.  I got them from the same estate auction as the treasures in this post, this post, and this post.  Kinda makes me want to change the kitchen knobs... :)


I'm linking to:

Almost Summertime

The recent beautiful weather has made me want to spruce up our outdoor space.  I really feel the need for something "green" on the front porch... the only problem is I have a black thumb.  You'd think as much as I love the color green I'd have a green thumb, but I don't.  I inherited this unfortunate killing of plants from my mother.  Justin, however, doesn't seem to kill things as quickly as I do, so there is hope for our house.  I think I just have paid attention to my plants very well before, so I'm going to give this a try.

I really like the way succulents look and I think they are pretty easy to maintain, so they're first on my list to find.  I think I'd like a few inside as well.  Here are a few inspiration pictures I've found:

Aren't these colors fun?  (picture from Apartment Therapy)

Picture from Florico Foliage

I think these look fun, too.  (picture from Florabundance)

I'll post what we put together as we do it.  I think I could really like to garden.  When I was little I would help my dad in his garden and I used to make mud pies, I generally liked playing in the dirt.  I think there's hope for our yard... only time will tell!

Do you have any suggestions/tips for me?

Sante South

About 2 weeks ago the Alzheimer's Association  put on their annual event called Sante South to raise money for Alzheimer's education and research.  The event is a wine festival that consists of many different wineries and restaurants providing food and beverages for the attendees to taste.  I volunteered to help with the silent auction again this year.  I designed and decorated the item display to go along with the wine theme.  Here are a few pictures of the display:

Alzheimer's Disease affects countless families.  Some one in the U.S. develops the disease every 69 seconds.  If you would like to donate to help this cause you can do so here.

If I were building my dream house...

...I'd want my bathroom to look like this.

http://www.hgtv.com/designers-portfolio/room/contemporary/bathrooms/3629/index.html



Look at all that green happiness...


How could you not be excited to get ready in this room everyday?

Up and Down

I've been looking at many different aspects of houses.  We are planning to build one.  So, I'm trying to see what things will look like and find pictures of what I've got in my mind to share with my fiance'.  I've recently been searching for stairs and I've found some interesting things.  Check out this site.  It's quite modern, and most of the designs would not "go" in my house, but very cool.  I found the picture below is from the blog, ouno design.  Which led me to the blog stair porn, which has every stair you could ever imagine, pretty amazing.

Can you imagine trying to walk up and down these?

 

One of the first things I was taught in interior design was: "form follows function."   While the form of the pic on the left is pretty awesome, I'm not so sure about the function.  Although, I don't think the point is for them to be super functional, I still can't imagine myself trying to get down them before I've had my coffee in the morning. :)  

I love green.

Here we go... post number one.  Honestly, I'm not really sure how to get started so I'm just going to jump in.  I'm getting married on 1.1.11!  My finance' and I both currently live in apartments that the other can't move into so we are also working on a new place to live.  Therefore, wedding plans and house plans consume most of my thoughts... it's REALLY fun and I love it!

This is just kinda an introductory/where I'm coming from post, but below is a link to a cool design element I found recently.  I love a pop of color... especially green.  I probably won't do the first pic in my house, (because the elements I already have to work with wouldn't coordinate well) but I love the simplicity of the tone on tone whites with the bright door.  There room feels serene and fresh, awesome. 

The next few pictures are pretty cool, too. I like the second one because I think ceilings get forgotten a lot.  You don't have to paint it bright green, but let's at least put some thought into it.  If plain white works best in your space great, let's jut make sure it does just that... works in the space.  Putting some thought into the ceiling can really add some unexpected and nice depth to a space. (I should do some research on ceilings... future ceiling post coming.)

While I'm not crazy about the third picture, I LOVE the fourth one!  I love the exposed brick and the dark beams.  Worn elements make me happy.  I think I'd do a few less colors and pop some chrome accessories in the space.  The space looks lived in and inviting yet high style, I love it.


Well here's the link:

http://www.modhomeec.com/2010/08/23/a-dollup-of-green/

What do you think?  I hope you enjoy!