Let the Fall DIY Decorating Begin!: Fall Banner DIY

Now that the Labor Day festivities have finished and we’ve officially settled into September. It’s time to think about FALL! At least for me it is. Fall is my favorite season. I love the bright colors, the crisp air, and warm bonfires. It’s such a cozy and beautiful time of year. 

I live in Virginia, which means that even though it's September it's still about 90 degrees during the day. But I am originally from PA where fall really did begin in September. I can remember going pumpkin picking in sweaters by mid-September when I was younger but that's no longer the case here in VA. 

Regardless of the temperature, in my world once we pass Labor Day it's time to break out the fall decorations and begin making fall festival plans! This year I finally have a mantle to decorate so I spent this weekend getting the decorations ready. 

The fireplace banner has become popular the last year or so and while you can buy gorgeous pre-made ones in the store, they are usually pricey and I get more satisfaction out of decorations that I can make myself or add my personal touch to. 

So here is how you can make your very own fall fireplace banner.

First you will need to gather your supplies. You will need:

• Burlap (I bought fall themed burlap at Michaels -- it was about $5 for 9 feet)
• Scissors
• Twine
• Stapler or craft glue (I prefer a stapler)
• Measuring Tape
• Fabric Marker or decorative paint

Next you will have to measure your fireplace and mantel and decide how many space you want your banner to take up. Once you have done that you then can decide on the size of your squares or rectangles.

I created rectangles because of the look I wanted. They are 6 inches high and 5 inches wide. I then proceeded to cut 4 rectangles that were the exact same size.

Once your squares or rectangles are cut, you want to lay them out flat on the counter. You want to measure out the length of your twine. I used about 3.5 feet of twine. I planned to have 2 inches of space in between my rectangles when  they were hanging. But the distance is completely up to you -- use your own digression. Now that you've gotten your twine ready, you want to grab your craft glue or stapler. 

You want to flip your burlap over so that the side you want facing out is facing down on the counter. My burlap has pumpkins and gourds printed on it but you can use any kind, including plain burlap. Once your squares or rectangles are flipped over you want to either glue or staple the flap down. If you're using glue you want to be careful to only put it at the bottom of the flap so that you can still thread your twine through the flap. If you're using a stapler then you can just thread the twine through or put the twine under the flap before stapling because it will still be able to slide through for space adjustments. Once all of your pieces have their flaps glued or stapled down it's time to thread the twine through if you haven't already. Don't worry about the length on either end of the banner, you can adjust that and cut off any extra after you hang it.

Now that your banner is assembled it's time to add your letters. I spelled out Fall but you could spell our autumn or leaves or whatever you may like, just make sure each letter has it's own square, I used a fabric marker that I got from Rite Aid to create my letters. I liked how thick it was and I had more control over it than a paint brush. But if you have a steadier hand than me go ahead and use the paint! I went over my letters a few times with the marker to get it as dark as I wanted. Burlap isn't easy to color on! Once your letters are on your squares let it dry a few minutes. Then you are ready to hang it!

Above is my mantle with my fall banner. I also used a leaf and acorn fall garland that I found for $10 at a local fabric store. The rest of my mantel is from Home Goods. I simply took a large clear jar and put fall pauperie in it. I placed a ceramic jar by it. And on the other side is an orange vase I also found at Home Goods with decorative sticks in, I use those sticks with my normal blue vases but they also fit this decor so I used them for my fall mantel as well. Feel free to mix and match your fall banner with any and all of your mantel decorations.

And as always ENJOY! :)

Curtains: Often overlooked and often wrongly hung

Today we’re going to talk about curtains. You know the fabric that covers your windows to keep the sun out or to add some color and flair to a room. What I am sure many of you don’t know is the proper way to hang them.

 

Curtains are easily over looked because they are a basic decor item but they also tend to be added as an afterthought. All of this is fine, however, many people don’t hang their curtains properly which then gives their living rooms, dining rooms, and a bedrooms a less than polished look.

My dad works in the textile industry—specifically in window treatments. Therefore, I pick out the wrong curtains or hang them poorly, I am sure to be ridiculed by him. But really the rules for window treatments and curtains are simple.

It’s the 1 inch up and 1 inch over rule.

When hanging curtain rods before putting up your sconces or your rod holders you want to measure—measure one inch to the left of the window and one inch to the right of the window then make a teeny tiny pencil mark. Next you want to go to both marks you just made and measure one inch up for both of them and put another teeny tiny pencil mark. You now can erase your first pencil marks because you no longer need them.

Once you follow the one inch up and one inch over rule, you can secure your sconces or rod holders and then begin to hang your curtains. The length of your curtains will vary depending on your personal style and room. But there are a few rules that hold true no matter what your style is. Below there is a picture for the dos of curtains and the don’ts. And just like everything else, there are rules or guidelines rather on how to hang your curtains and what they should loosely look like.

This is an absolute no.

This however, is a yes. It's simply and pretty. Perfectly hung and perfect length.

The first is that there are such things are too long curtains. If you want floor length curtains that is perfectly, but when measuring for length be sure that the bottom of the curtains just barely kiss the floor.  Do NOT let your curtains ball up on the floor. It’s not as attractive looking as you may think, it’s also again the window treatment world.

Since we just too long, there are also too short curtains also. Your curtains should just kiss your window sill, they should not be 2 inches higher or lower. This is also something that you may think looks okay to have a few extra or less inches, but it doesn’t. The only time you want to have shorter “curtains” is if you are doing a window scarf over your base curtains.

The length rules only apply to your base or background curtains. If you are going to use some decorative scarfs over top then you have much more leeway in length but for your simple, basic curtain length is important—too long or too short will wreck the whole flow of your room, which is not something that any one wants.

And there you have it! Now you can hang curtains correctly and also rather quickly. Remember one inch up and one inch over and you’ll be golden!

  

Budget, Budget, Budget...And Then Budget Some More

Budget: A 6 letter word that so many of us cringe at. But your budget should be of utmost importance whether you are buying a house or decorating your home, or even buying a car or groceries. Your budget is what will keeps you grounded and it's what keeps you out of debt.

Living on a budget has a lot of negative connotations, so many people think living on a budget means poverty or a life of the mundane basics. But that's simply not true. You can live on a budget and still enjoy your life and even splurge every once in awhile. 

I have been living on a strict budget for the last 2 years (and when I lived at home, my parents always had a budget). And it has already paid off dramatically. My fiance and I went from living in a 500 square foot studio to a 1025 square foot 2 bedroom apartment in just 14 months time. Neither of us make a ton of money, his current full time job is teaching and my current full time job is an entry level PR position. We don't make bad money but we certainly don't make a lot. But even with our meager funds we have been able to upgrade our apartment and lifestyle without breaking the bank-- All because we live on a budget.

How is this relevant to turning your house into a home?

Well if you don't have a budget in mind, it's very easy to spend more money than you can afford resulting in 2 horrible outcomes, you either go into debt or you stop projects that are only partially complete. Neither outcome is desirable. And both can be avoided if you work on a budget.

My fiance and I are working with a woman who had no budget in mind. None whatsoever. We came up with some designs giving her a range in pricing since we were unsure of what she could truly afford. She constantly choose the more expensive designs and furniture. But still had no budget in mind no matter how much we pressed her for one.

Besides updating the inside of her home, she also wanted us to tackle the outside of her home. My fiance willing complied because he loves landscaping. Before long we had a laundry list of things to do in addition to your initial contract. Again, no problem -- we were excited to turn her backyard into a beautiful retreat. 

But not long after work on the outside began, she suddenly realized that she could not afford all of the work she wanted done on the inside and outside of her home. And she began to panic. 

Exhibit A of one of the bad outcomes...stopping before projects are complete due to failed budgeting.

In order to help alleviate this, we had to sit her down and have her prioritize what was a necessity and what was a want. Sometimes you can't have everything on your list; at least not all at one time. Unfortunately, money does not grow on trees so there are limitations.

Again, this is why having a budget is so important for any and all home projects no matter how big or how small the projects may be.(I once budgeted $15 for a personal project of mine, and ended up coming in at $10. I was ecstatic; big or small a budget is vital.)

Luckily, we were able to wrap up a couple of the projects to the point where they no longer appeared to be in mid-completion without making any big dent in her budget. We also had a planning session with her for what she wants in the future so that she has designs and layouts to refer to. We have turned from doers to consultants for this client. But at the end of the day it has helped save her budget and has helped her better prioritize her necessary projects. It also has allowed her to still be able to get some small projects done on her house. 

And this is what we are all about...helping people turn their houses into homes. We want everyone to love their, whether you rent or own your place, you should love coming home to it and be happy to show it off.

Budgeting is OKAY, I promise.

Everyone's budget is different. And that's OKAY. I am a firm believer of setting a budget and sticking to it. It can be difficult at times, but with a little patience and hard work you can achieve just about anything you want for your home on a budget. You just can't be afraid to try something new or to get your hands dirty. 

I live frugally both by choice and by necessity. But I by no means feel cheated in life. I still am able to go out to dinner on occasion and take trips to the beach to visit my parents. And I still pay my rent, bills, and student loans. All the while making sure I am tucking money away to save up for a rainy day or more ideally for a home that I can personally own. 

So like I said, I know we all cringe at budgeting, but it truly is a lifesaver. I live by my budget and I live just fine. 

Stay tuned for some tips and trips on budgeting for home remodeling and daily life expenses. :)

A Dream Becomes a Goal when YOU Decide to Achieve It

We all have dreams, we all have goals. But how many of us actually turn our dreams into goals?

My guess. . .  . not many.

For years I have been one of those people who separated my dreams from my goals, which looking back now, really seems silly. So about 2 weeks ago, after I had a slight meltdown over my life, my fiance and I took one of our dreams and began making it into a goal.

Two weeks later  here I am taking another step from taking my dream to a goal and then hopefully my goal to reality. My fiance and I have started a remodeling and interior decorating business. And after learning many difficult lessons in the past year, I was more than ready for a change, and for the first time in my life I was open to doing something that I did not plan out.

HGTV is one of our favorite past times, and both of us have loved those TV shows even before we met 3 years ago. And suddenly, it just made sense to me. I was happiest when we had just moved and I was able to take our blank apartment and turn it into something that was ours. I had the same feeling when I decorated our first apartment which was a 500 sq. foot studio. (Talk about challenging!) And I had the same feeling when we talked about the possibilities of our future home that we hopefully will own one day. And that's when it hit me, despite my degrees, what truly made me happy was interior decorating. It was so mindless for me, I would sit on Pinterest for hours perusing the home decor and remodeling pins. And I would help my friends decorate their apartments. Stores like HomeGoods are my favorite to shop in.

My fiance realized his love for remodeling and building houses a bit earlier than I. He spent months helping a family friend build an energy efficient home. (See photos of the house on our website.) He has been hooked ever since.

We like to say that my fiance is the muscles, I've got the eye, and together we have the passion and knowledge to help people achieve their dream homes. This blog will travel with us as we continue turning our dream into goal and then into solidified reality. We both still work our day jobs, which certainly makes starting a brand new business tricky, but we know in the end, it will be totally worth it. One day we will be able to do this full time and when we do, we will get to do what we love while spending more time together and helping more people love their homes. What could be better than that?!

And guess what?! We already have our first clients! I cannot describe the utter shock and amazement I felt over having clients after just launching our website and business. It was one of the best feelings!

But now back to this blog.

I will be sharing all that we learn along the way, from the ups and downs to the tricks of the trade that we learn throughout our projects. I will also be sharing home decorating trends and tips, as well as homes, styles, and decor that I love.

I hope that you will follow us on this journey. If you have any advice for us please feel free to write us a comment. Or if you think you just might want to hire two budding home remodelers then please go visit our website and send us an email. We'd love to hear from you all!

Remember a dream becomes a goal when YOU decide to achieve it.