DIY Projects

Crafts for the Uncrafty

DIY Yarn-Wrapped Lucky Horseshoe

March 7, 2019

Ever see something in a store, and think oh, I could totally make that! And then you realize that there's a reason why you're working in, say, ad sales rather than running an adorable little shop in Brooklyn specializing in hand-whittled incense burners shaped like sloths? Because even though hand-whittling may seem like a thing you should be able to do, it actually...isn't.

Which is all to say that the other day I saw something in a store, and thought oh, I could totally make that!

And then I DID.

DIY Projects

What To Do: Hideous ’70s Linoleum Floor

February 4, 2019

Oh heyyyyyy

I spent yesterday in Malibu, doing a little renovation consult for a friend who recently purchased a trailer home right on the ocean (more on the trailer home thing in a bit; it's a super cool story). It's an interesting undertaking, because the house is going to be torn down and rebuilt from the ground up in a couple of years, so the renovation is more about making the house pretty and livable for the short term, without spending tons of money on things that'll ultimately end up getting tossed.

So. My advice was to figure out what amount of money per month was a comfortable amount to spend on general Life Happiness (meaning an amount that creates no financial stress whatsoever, but that feels "worth it" for the lifestyle improvements it'll confer), and multiply that by 24 to arrive at a budget for the mini-reno that'll take him through the next two years. Certain things are OK to spend a little more on, IMO - appliances that'll make the jump to the new place, and so forth. But when it comes to structural features, things are a little trickier.

Crafts for the Uncrafty

DIY Jojoba Oil Solid Perfume

December 19, 2018

When I was in elementary school, I was always setting up little stands in our building's lobby to sell homemade lip balms, customized friendship bracelets and such - and I was one of only maybe six kids in the entire building, so I actually made out like quite the bandit during these entrepreneurial ventures. (My "lip balms" were made by mixing Fuzzy Peach-scented Body Shop bath oil capsules into my mom's leftover Vaseline and throwing in some food coloring, so mayyyyybe not...oh, I don't know, especially safe to put on your mouth. But I was seven, so I assume liability was less of an issue than it might be nowadays.)

Apparently the desire to make giftable crafts stuck around, because I had wayyy too much fun making these solid perfumes - and they're a really cute last-minute gift idea for kids to make for friends and relatives (so long as you help them with the stove-inclusive part; let's please not burn any tiny fingers in the process of giftable craft-making). They're also 100% free of Fuzzy Peach-smelling chemical pods, hooray!

Note: You can choose whatever essential oils you want, and can combine them as you will to customize your scent - just make sure that the number of drops you use ends up totaling 30. (I was thinking about Tocca Bianca when I made this, so I went for a combo of lavender and lemon, leaning more heavily on the lavender.)

Before & After Renovations

How I Turned My Creepy, Claustrophobic Bathroom Into…This.

August 21, 2018

Wait until you see inside.

Awhile back, a reader wrote in to ask me an interesting question: How, she wondered, did I get past the intimidation factor of a redesign? How in the world was I confident enough in my vision to actually...you know...pull the trigger, and make it happen?

The short answer is, unfortunately, that I maintain a (possibly unfounded) belief that if something goes amiss, you can fix it. In other words: it's just a house. And it's just decor. And while obviously you should put a lot of thought into a major renovation before kicking it off, the worst thing that can happen is that you don't like it, and then you either do something else, or you live with it.

DIY Projects

DIY Ankle Cuffs

June 14, 2018

J.Crew Sandals | Anklets by Me

I have decided that anklets are going to be my thing this summer. But not just one anklet - oh, no. Two anklets. Matching anklets. One on each ankle.

I decided this the other morning. I was drinking my morning coffee, when all of a sudden a pile of jewelry-making items was deposited on the table in front of me. Apparently Francesca had been thinking of making me matching anklets - one for each ankle! - for my birthday, but then realized, ugh, jewelry making, ugh, and decided that she would give me the idea, and then give me the stuff, and then let me go ahead and do the actual making of the things.

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