In this week's article I have decided to share some of my personal projects that I am working on. I will be listing them all since I am now into home decor and DIY projects. There is just something about your upper 20's that hits different. One minute you want to climb the cooperate ladder and the next minute you want to be Suzie Homemaker and renovate every room in your house. It is insane how much working from home can allow you to either see the potential in yourself or encourage you to stick to your day job. Whatever it is, I am rolling with the punches for now to see where it takes me.
My projects have become therapy for me. I can literally lose myself in hand crocheting, making a macrame or some other project that I am yet to discover.
DIY Hand Crochet Blanket/Throw and Pillow
Since I have relatives living up north and it is winter, I decided to gift them with handmade blankets. After watching one video on YouTube I was ready to start crocheting. No needles, just my good old faithful hands and the need to create. It is a simple process that starts off with a plait and then looping the yarn through that plait continuously for the blanket. The pillow is the same process except that you have to make your plait into a circle at the base. For a thicker look, without the space, I did mine just a little bit tighter. I decided that if I make a blanket it should at least keep me warm.
I used the chunky yarn that came in multiple colors (black, white and grey) to make the first blanket on the left. For reference, the blanket is on a queen sized bed. It came out beautiful as you can see! For the other blanket I used 2 colors, pink mixed with brown/white and burgundy. The second blanket is slightly smaller but does the job of keeping you warm. You can order on Amazon or purchase at your local Walmart or Michaels. Depending on how large you want your blanket to be you may need more yarn. For a medium sized blanket I use 4-5 skeins of yarn. For the round hand crochet pillow, I used 1 skein and then stuffed it with cotton.
By clicking on the links or pictures you can find the tutorials that I used to create these and the products as well.
Most products can be found at your local Burlington, Five and Below, Walmart or Michaels. The grey shaggy/plush pillow shams are from Five and Below but you can find them linked.
You can remove them and wash them when doing laundry. I recommend that you wash them on the wrong side (inside out) , just so that they maintain their softness and overall look.
Also, as you can see, some of these pictures are crooked. I am not a photographer but maybe that could be the next thing that I find to occupy my time.
Macrame
I love macrame wall hangings but they can be pricey. For the macrame pieces/wall art, I used Bernat baby blanket yarn. Very soft material that does the job. I also use a 1/2 inch PVC pipe with a length of 23". I wrapped the yarn around the pipe to cover it and then I cut my yarn and made several Cow Hitch knots around the covered pipe. For the hanger, I took the two end pieces of the yarn, both left and right and made a knot at the top so that I could secure it to a hook on the wall. The pipe you can purchase at Home Depot for less than $3. The length of your cord will vary depending on how long you want your macrame to be. I went for medium to large so my cords are 70" long before the knots are made. I used three cords together to make one knot so that my macrame would look full. Overall the macrame is about 25" long from the pvc to the end of the cords and 42" from the hook to the end of the cords. Which means it is more on the medium size to large.
You can cut your macrame in a v shape at the bottom but I like mine as is. It is simple but adds a nice look to your space and can be done in any color.
For the round macrame, I used the same type of yarn but in white and a 10" wooden ring. The Wooden ring 12 piece 6 size wooden rings are great for structure and can easily be covered with your yarn. This is if you want to create a circular macrame.
This set of 3 Macrame Plant Hanger for $9.99 is definitely worth the price. These have been a great addition to our home. They hold up really well and can carry the weight of your plant. Great for your front porch, bedroom or livingroom.
Tip: Good for faux plants in chalk/ceramic pots and good for real plants in plastic or lightweight pots.
Bathroom Home Decor
I have decided to go with matte black finishes for our bathroom. This will actually be the first bathroom that I get to decorate from scratch and I am excited! My creative juices are now returning. They had up and left a few years ago when I decided Dental Hygiene School made more sense than art/design school. While I do not have the entire arrangement figured out, I know exactly what I want to use and the aesthetic that I am going for.
The Black waterfall Bathroom faucet for $45.99 is of superior quality and adds a beautiful aesthetic that you can only find in those pricey high end homes or hotels. When compared to Home Depot and other stores, I found that this was better than the ones in store based on the look, quality and price. We were very pleased when they arrived. Real metal, heavy and perfectly matte black.
We have purchased this amazing Shower faucet and mixer for $169 on Amazon with a matte black finish. I was so surprised by how heavy and high quality the finish is. As you can see, it came very well packaged and we can't wait to install these!
These beautiful hooks are from Five and Below. They have 4 different designs but I only bought the above 3 for the kitchen.
Hope that you enjoyed this post. Like, comment, share and subscribe!
We love the support and we love to return the favor! Fancy a balanced lifestyle? Check out our lifestyle contentand shop VirtualMe.
Okkkk
You are so talented.