DIY Spring Flower Box

I know it's no where near Springtime, but oh how much I miss color in my home! I enjoy the coziness of Winter, but it has come to that time in the season when I become desperate to see flowers blooming and trees budding. My first project for Spring focuses on my flower trough. I will link my tutorial on how I made my flower trough for **ONLY $2** if you're interested HERE >> http://jessicarosehomedecor.blogspot.com/2015/07/diy-wood-flower-trough-box-under-2.html  For a few weeks now, I have envisioned recreating a mini-flower box that incorporates cascading vines, a mixture of wild flowers, and succulent-looking leaves. This is what I came up with :)

You will need the following materials:

Pink & Yellow flowers - Michael's - Full Price: $3.99 each - On sale: $2.39 each  |  Vines - Hobby Lobby - Full Price: $3.99 each - On Sale: $1.99 each  |  Lilacs - Michael's - Full Price: $1.79 - On Sale: $1.07

Left - Michael's - Full Price: $4.99 - On Sale: $2.99  |  Right - Hobby Lobby - Full Price: $3.99 - On Sale: $1.99

Flower trough  |  Flower foam  |  Moss  |  Glue  |  Sponge  |  Wire Cutters

 First, apply glue to the top of your foam - spread evenly across with a sponge brush. Add moss atop the glue and cover as much of the exposed foam as possible. Don't worry if you can't get everything - the flowers will cover up the rest.

Let dry for an hour. Turn over and shake off the excess moss. Place your flower trough over it. Then, begin adding the vine pieces one by one. Insert in the space between the foam and the wood box. Cascade them down the sides of the box for a natural effect.

 Finally, insert the rest of the flowers into the foam. Make sure the flower placement is random in order to keep with the "wild flower box" theme. Adding a lot of greenery gives off the appearance of weeds, which is one of the main characteristic of wild flowers - so don't underestimate their influence! Also avoid making all the flowers the same height in order to add depth and dimension.

DIY Christmas Shelf Wreath

My staircase shelf was seriously lacking some holiday spirit. I didn't want to buy anything new (I dread going to the shops during the holiday season), and per my usual style I wanted to create something myself. When I realized I had so much leftover material from my Craft Beer-Inspired Christmas Wreath I decided to make another wreath, but with a twist.

You will need the following materials:

The majority of the items on the left were leftover pieces I've had for years now. I newly purchased the 4 items on the right from Hobby Lobby - Bauble stems: $0.77 each | Wreath $2.50 | Bronze pine cones: $0.50 | Evergreen stem: $1.00

These were the leftover materials I used from my Craft Beer-Inspired Christmas Wreath (shown new). 2 Evergreen stems on left: $3.99 each - Michael's | Evergreen stem on right: $2.50 - Hobby Lobby | Glittery hop stems: $0.75 each - Michael's

Taking wire cutters, place as shown:

Add your glittery & colorful pieces. Secure everything using a hot glue gun.

Add accent pieces...

 ...and you are done!

No shelf space? No problem - this can be used as wall decor too!

Craft Beer-Inspired Christmas Wreath Tutorial

Being a self-proclaimed craft beer snob, when I saw that Michael's had glittery hop stems this year I immediately knew I had to incorporate them into my front door Christmas wreath. I love that they add that little something extra to your stereotypical holiday accent pieces & they are SUPER AFFORDABLE! We are talking in the cent-denomination people!! In fact, this project only cost me ~$15! + I still have material leftover for other holiday projects!

Michael's - $0.66 each. I used 4 - 3 silver and 1 gold.

I used a grapevine wreath (Hobby Lobby - $2.50) as the base, wire cutters to trim each piece off its corresponding stem, and a hot glue gun to secure everything. My placement technique is the same one I have used in all of my previous DIY wreath tutorials. I will link a video tutorial I did going in-depth on my process here >> https://youtu.be/YFkrSZOUmAs As shown in the image below, combining different colors & textures within the evergreen-color family allows each piece to compliment one another.

Left & middle - Michaels - $3.99 each. Right - Hobby Lobby - $2.50

This in combination with the bright, glittery accents prevents the overall piece from falling flat to the eye. Don't forget to add some pine cones!

All from Hobby Lobby - $0.75 each

After layering and mixing all of these materials, your wreath should look something like this:

Close-ups:

10 Simple & Affordable Ways To Liven Up Your Home: Fall Edition

Some people feel discouraged to decorate for a new season because it can be overwhelming & pricey. Having to change multiple areas in your home can add up quickly, especially if you don't already have a pre-existing inventory of seasonal decor in storage! On today's blog post I show you that it is possible to transition your seasonal decor for your entire home simply & inexpensively. For each of the 10 area listed below, I will show a before & after picture of how I initially styled it for Summer and then how I tweaked it to encompass Fall. 

For the most part, I used the following materials. Don't be fooled by how sparse the quantity may look. I used them as vase/container fillers in every room + had some left over to use for my front door wreath!  These were all purchased from Hobby Lobby & were 50% off! The top and last row were $2.50 each & the wheat bunches were $3.00.
 
 

I also used these $0.98 pumpkins from Wal*Mart. I was inspired by this DIY Pottery Barn Inspired Faux Pumpkins tutorial I found on Pinterest >> LINK HERE. I did tweak it slightly by dry brushing over the stripes of brown so that it was more washed out instead of intensely brown.
Before:

After:

I also linked corresponding tutorials in each section as a reference for any other materials that aren't shown above, which are all inexpensive as well! All in all, I spent no more than $30 on materials to decorate my entire house for Fall! Now that to me is a STEAL!!!

#1 Mantel
Easy DIY Floating Mantel UNDER $20!! LINK HERE!

Before:

After:
DIY Weathered Picket Fence LINK HERE! 

Simply secure Fall leaves & pine cones to a piece of twine and you have yourself a DIY Autumn banner!

Fill vases will different types of Fall leaves & twigs. Accent with a faux gourd & a decorative plate.

You can't go wrong with a rustic pumpkin placed atop a candle stand ;)

#2 Kitchen Bar
DIY Wood Flower Trough UNDER $2! LINK HERE!
Before:

After:
Simply switch out your Summer flowers for Fall ones! I love the color of these rich burgundy/brown hydrangeas.

Before:

 
After:

Mini pumpkins and gourds can be a little pricey at pumpkin patches & even the grocery store! This year I planned ahead and grew my own mini pumpkins in my backyard. A seed packet was only $0.75! The whole process is so much more gratifying - you get to decorate your home with things you harvested from your own garden! :)

Basket is from Michael's for only $2.50!

#3 Kitchen Island

Farmhouse-Inspired DIY Cutting Board LINK HERE! Before:

After:

The rustic, antique tin filled with wheat & golden mini flowers totally encompasses that farmhouse feel.

#4 Stovetop

5 Easy & Inexpensive Ways to Liven Up Your Kitchen: Spring Edition LINK HERE! Before:

After:

Can't go wrong with some sunflowers, wheat, & a mini pumpkin!

#5 Kitchen Counter
 Before:

After:
3 Ways: Distressed Autumn Mason Jars LINK HERE!

I had so much fun creating this Halloween inspired mason jar!

#6 Bedroom Shelf

Distressing - 4 Ways: How-to Make Anything Look Antique LINK HERE! Before:

After:
How To: *Rustic Window* Using Dollar Store Picture Frames! LINK HERE!

#7 Staircase Shelf

 Before:

After:
DIY Mini-Pumpkin Patch LINK HERE!
Who doesn't love anything mini? ;) 

#8 Front Door Wreath
Classic Fall Wreath Tutorial LINK HERE!

#9 Staircase wreath 
Colorful Aspen-Inspired Fall Wreath Tutorial LINK HERE!

#10 Bathroom
Harvest-Inspired Rustic Wheat Tin - Under $10! LINK HERE!