UPDATED: DIY Kitchen Island w/Benches UNDER $100! Rustic Cottage meets Biergarten Pub

I honestly think my husband & I were carpenters in a past life. We are the type of people who love to get their hands dirty & create things. We enjoy customizing & designing things to suit our needs. Forget buying things - that's no fun for us (or our wallets), and it doesn't give you that same satisfaction or sense of accomplishment.

For 2 years my husband and I have been wanting to make our own kitchen island. Up until this venture, I had only dabbled in re-staining shelves, coffee/side tables, & nightstands. My husband  re-configured an old frig & turned it into a kegerator with custom taps. So this time around we wanted to take it a step further and build something from the bottom up.

Our inspiration was a combination of Rustic Cottage meets Biergarten Pub - if that makes any sense. We didn't want something fancy. We wanted the woodwork to express what kind of people we are - laid back, informal, simple, & beer lovers - nothing artificial. We also wanted the piece to bring light into the room because no one likes a dark, gloomy looking kitchen!

So once we determined our theme, we needed to figure out how to put this sucker together of course! You can't just slap some wood together and call it a table..well I guess you could, but your Biergarten table would probably end up falling apart on you, and that would be a disgrace to the Beer Gods. We looked at 2 or 3 tutorials online, but this one was the simplest >> http://www.lowes.com/creative-ideas/kitchen-and-dining/diy-dining-set/project .

I suggest looking at tutorials & coming up with your dimensional measurements first. This helps you determine what materials you need so that you don't end up walking around Home Depot aimlessly for 2 hours - shout-out to my fellow DIY'ers who know this feeling all too well ;)

BORING TECHNICAL STUFF

For reference, we bought the following pieces for the table: 

2 2X8 10 ft wood planks (Douglas Fir) $8.70 each (table top)

1 4X4 12 ft wood plank (Douglas Fir) $15.42 (legs)

2 2X4 10 ft wood planks (Douglas Fir) $4.36 each (underside support)

For the benches: 

2 2X8 8 ft wood planks (Douglas Fir) $8.70 each (table top)

2 4X4 8 ft wood plank (Douglas Fir) $10.52 each (legs)

1 2X4 16 ft wood planks (Douglas Fir) $7.05 (underside support)

Table dimensions:

Height: 34.5"

Length: 5'

Bench dimensions:

Height: 21.5"

Length: 4'

Difference between the bottom of the table and top of the bench, or as my husband would say >> "vertical leg room" - he so fancy: 8"

Make sure you pick the best wood pieces - this is not something to overlook! Yes, unfortunately it means you are going to have to sift through plank after plank after plank to find the ones that aren't all banged up, scratched, split, & crooked. Otherwise you will have yourself wobbly, uneven table that is so utterly scratched that it is no longer considered "rustic-looking". Not to mention you will have the wobbliest benches for you & your guests to sit on - we all know how utterly annoying that is!!

So if you're like us & don't own the fancy power tools to carry out this DIY, don't fret! We had Home Depot cut all of our wood planks to the specific lengths we wanted. This saved us time and our sanity. Power saw = AMAZINGLY ACCURATE vs. hand saw = UNEVEN FRUSTRATION!! 

 Other tips:

Table underside support

 Sand each individual piece before assembling it together. Start by putting together the underside support first. Use wood glue in combination with screw fastners & make pilot holes! 

Bench underside support

Bench L-Supports

 Try to avoid drilling screws in and near knots to avoid the wood from splitting. Make sure knots ARE visible so that it adds character to the table. Stand the legs up before attaching them to determine if they stand straight without wobbling. 

Now on to my favorite part - staining! We used the following:

 

*Before stain on the left / After 2 coats of stain on the right*

Before:

Choose a stain or paint that accentuates your theme. We selected an oil stain because of the way it subtly saturated the natural coloring of the wood.We also used a satin-finish polyurethane to not only protect the wood from inevitable food & drink stains, but to also saturate the color a step further.

Only Oil Stain:

With Oil Stain AND Polyurethane:

 Can you see how much more vibrant the stain shines through with the help of the polyurethane?? Insanely beautiful! The color goes from dull to perfection. LOVE!

Close-ups:

I also have a tutorial on the Orchid centerpiece I chose as the finishing touch for this project - Super easy & ridiculously inexpensive. Link here >> DIY Orchid UNDER $10!

This project took only 1 WEEK to complete and COST NO MORE THAN $100! That may sound like a lot, but to put this into perspective: 4 years ago, we bought the cheapest dining room table from K-Mart & that cost us over $200 -_- No particle board or fake looking epoxy here - just real, sturdy, heavy duty wood. Take that Ikea! And did I mention that my kitchen now smells like a forest without the help of an overpriced Bath & Body works candle? ;)

xx,

Jessica

3 DIY Tutorials for the First Day of Spring!

It's finally the first day of Spring! I feel like I've been waiting for this day since the first day of Winter ;) It is during Spring that I love crafting, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. So to encourage the scratch to that impending DIY crafting itch for all fellow crafting enthusiasts, I wanted to remind you that I have 3 new Spring tutorials on my blog! Please share with your family & friends, and please send me any of your recreations! 

To those few individuals who have reached out & shown your support - whether it's a 'like', re-share, +1, or a comment - it truly encourages me & lifts me up. I have felt more support from strangers in different parts of the world than anyone else & I just want to say how thankful I am :) This venture is a big, surprising endeavor for me & I hope to see it grow more and more. After years of feeling lost and so unhappy, God has finally guided me to a point in my life where I am starting to do things solely based on how much joy it brings me - It is a blessing & something I never take for granted. Okay, enough with the emotional stuff ;) Here are the links to get your Spring crafting on!

1. The Perfect Springtime Wreath

2. 5 Easy & Inexpensive Ways to Liven Up Your Kitchen: Spring Edition

3. Easy & Inexpensive DIY Orchid Arrangement for ONLY $10!

xx,

Jessica

DIY Orchid Arrangement UNDER $10!

I know you've all seen them - those beautifully potted orchid arrangements at the grocery store. The colors are majestic - the perfect finishing touch to liven up that room you've been decorating. Excitedly, you reach for it, lift it up, and see the price tag - $30?! Sometimes even $40. For something that has an inevitable expiration date?! No, absolutely NOT. So you put it back and wallow in sadness over what could have been. But where there is a DIY, there is a way! Today's how-to solution to this overpriced problem will ONLY cost you $10* and I must say looks just as good if not even better than its counterpart. You will need the following materials:

Orchids: Hobby Lobby - $2.00 each; Vase: Michaels - $4.00; Fake Grass Topper: Michaels - $2.00; FloralCraft Dry Foam: Michaels (*everything purchased was on sale or discounted with a coupon)

I know some people are hesitant to purchase fake flowers for fear that it will indeed look fake and tacky. Here's a **Helpful suggestion - look at various pictures of orchids in person, online, or in magazines to see, on average, how they naturally stand & mimic this. This will ensure that your fake orchid will resemble as close to a real one as possible - sometimes even better. See image below:

This is an example of an orchid that does not resemble a real one. It looks stiff & way too tall. The green leaves & succulents don't look natural, and you can see the wire holding them together.

Taking your Craft foam, snuggly place it into the vase. Then insert one of the orchid stems into the foam. Carefully & with great detail, bend the stem to your liking.

When you are satisfied with your first stem, insert the second stem directly behind it & repeat.

Place the grass atop the craft foam. You can secure with a glue gun or simply press the plastic bottom into the foam.

 And you are finished!

This piece goes perfectly in any room. I chose to place this piece atop my new kitchen island that my husband & I just finished making. It matches perfectly :) Our inspiration was Rustic Cottage meets Biergarten Pub and only cost us $50!! If you would like to see details on how we built it, I will link it here. The benches, however, are not included in this link as they will be featured in an updated version of that blog post, so keep an eye out for that!

xx,

Jessica

5 Easy & Inexpensive Ways to Liven Up Your Kitchen: Spring Edition

This week I was really inspired to liven up my kitchen with all things Spring. I wanted to bring soft, earthy colors into the room without taking away from the clean, natural light it already has. I also didn't want to break the bank either. Here are 5 super easy & inexpensive ways to achieve this that encompass every area of your kitchen. 

#1: Stovetop Decor

I've always found this area to be particularly difficult to "style". I didn't want to go to typical route with chickens, salt & pepper shakers, pigs, chef caricatures...or anything else cheesy. And leaving it bare just makes the kitchen look unloved. I wanted something classic & clean...I know - big shocker coming from me! ;) You will need the following materials:

Wood Crate - Michaels: $1.00; Glass Vase - Hobby Lobby: $1.00; Paint - Michaels: $0.69; Baby's Breath - Michaels: $0.75

Decorative Cup - Home Goods: $2.99; Flowers - Misc. Leftover Flowers

Paint the basket with white paint. I ran out of paint sponges so I actually those eyeshadow sponges every self-respected makeup lover detests - Free & works just as well :)

While that's drying, "prune" some of the Baby's breath stems & place in the glass vase. Discard the cork and place in the crate.

Next, place the flowers in the decorative cup. Use flowers that match/complement the color theme of your kitchen. These were some leftover flowers I had from previous craft projects. You could also buy a plain, inexpensive glass jar for $1-2 and paint it white to achieve this.

Done!

#2 Shelf Decor

This piece perfectly adds to the natural light in the room. The rustic bird & birdcage accentuate the worn shelf.

Birdcage - Michaels: $4.00; Bird - Hobby Lobby: $2.00; Vase - Michaels: $2.00; Flowers - Misc. Leftovers

#3 Kitchen Counter

There is this hideous phone jack in our kitchen that I absolutely hate. If you have an area like this in your kitchen simply hang a Spring succulent piece in its place, add some necessary Bath & Body Works Spring lotions, and done.

Succulent - Michaels: $0.75 on clearance

#4 Kitchen Bar

This arrangement was featured in a previous blog post of mine, so for all the DIY details I will link that here. The only thing I changed was swapping out Winter branches for Spring flowers :)

Flowers - Michaels: $2.50

#5 Kitchen Island

I've always wanted an orchid, but have you seen how ridiculously overpriced they are?! I mean $20-$40 for something that is eventually going to die is just crazy. So I made one that looks just as good for only $10.00! But just to keep you coming back for more, I'm going to feature this in my next DIY blogpost so stay tuned! Consider this a sneak peak ;)

Orchids - Hobby Lobby: $2.00 each; Vase - Michaels: $4.00; Succulent - Michaels: $2.00

 xx,

Jessica

The Perfect Springtime Wreath

I love Spring. It's new life, birds singing, & trees flowering. It's soft, yet subtly bright coloring in everything that you see. It's peaceful and lush. This was the inspiration for today's DIY. The following are suggested materials. You can be as creative as you want to be when choosing your foliage. If you find that you are overwhelmed, try choosing a general color scheme, then pick flowers & fillers that match accordingly. I went with yellows, soft pinks, whites, & bright greens. Remember that Summer is for bright, colorful flowers. Spring is more for soft colors in combination with bright green foliage....well, in my opinion at least :)

All flower bouquets purchased at Michael's

Next is cutting & placement. For each stem cut 2 inches down using wire cutters. Doing this will allow the stem to fit snuggly within the grapevine wreath. I arranged the flowers in a particular pattern so that no two of the same flowers are next to each other. Doing this allows the colors, textures, & types to contrast and accentuate each other so that each color pops more. I place the flowers around the entire wreath FIRST, then I glued each piece SECOND, then I filled in spars areas with foliage LAST.

A fourth of the way placed

Fully placed, not yet glued

Place glue at the base

 And finished!

Close up:

 How gorgeous & easy is that?! This piece is so versatile. It's perfect for any room/space that desperately needs some life & light - an instant room face lift :)

xx,
Jessica

Simple How-To Transition from Winter to Spring

With a little less than 6 weeks before Spring starts, I officially have Spring Fever. As I write this, it's a perfect 70 degrees...in the beginning of February...in Colorado. NOT normal at all, especially when an early Spring usually implies a miserable Summer, BUT for now I chose to focus on my desire to add hints of Spring in my home without being in complete denial that we are only halfway through Winter. The keyword there was hints. Add little touches of green in combination with your Winter decor. 

Faux Glass Light Bulb ($0.75) - Hobby Lobby / Babies Breath ($0.75) - Michaels

Faux Succulent ($2.40) - Michaels

Vase ($7.00) - Hobby Lobby / Winter Branches ($3.00) - Michaels

You are simply adding a touch of greenery & life to areas of your home without completely abandoning Winter - it has feelings to, ya know. Add these hints of greenery & life for a simple & clean look without overdoing it or breaking the bank. 

xx, 

Jessica