Black and white

This weekend I finally got around to doing some of the crafty things I have been putting off. Perhaps I was inspired by the madness from the sample sale I attended last week (more on that later). In any case, after a visit to Madison to visit some college friends, Sunday was spent going out to breakfast with the boy, watching movies/dozing on the couch, and sprucing up the corner cabinet in my bathroom.

Before (sorry, my only before picture was taken in my tiny bathroom)

And after!

The project was super cheap and simple. The decorative paper on the top of the cabinet is actually Hallmark gift wrap from their "Modern Woman" collection. I adhered it with several layers of Mod Podge (warning: it is really difficult to do a large surface area like this one without those pesky air bubbles and took me several tries before I was satisfied/gave up). Then the edges of the cabinet got a fresh coat of black paint to give the cabinet more structure. This goes perfect in my black and white bathroom, and I'm ignoring the fact that it is a bit girly for my boy's tastes.

Sunshine daydream

Since moving to a shady, albeit pretty, tree-lined street, I have to admit that I have been craving more sunlight to stream in my windows. Of course, the grass is always greener with me- I used to live in a west-facing high-rise apartment with floor-to-ceiling windows and was annoyed that I had to dust every other day (at least in theory) and that my apartment was always about 15 degrees hotter than it should have been. I will eventually find my perfect compromise, but until then here is some pretty eyecandy.

Breaking barriers.

{Image}

Naked windows.

{Image}

Bring inside, out.

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Trick or Treat!

Trick or treat!

This week: the cutest homemade Halloween tricks (ok, treats really) from etsy!

Sweet coasters to hold your hot apple cider.

{Peganders}

Lovely little pumpkin.

{allthingswhite}

There is something adorably spooky about this decoration.

{Nesedecor}

Who's up for a frightening game?

{PsAndQ's}

A horrific print from drawing 101.

{tamaragarvey}

A collection of beautiful handblown glass pumpkins.

{JessieCGlass}

Perfect for the kitchen or bar-area.

{sleepyhollowprims}

Hang up a haunted photograph.

{zuppaartista}

Put your pillows in costume.

{sewluckygirl}

A necklace for the witching hour.

{crystalbouquet}

Delight your guests with some real witch's brew.

{printyourparty}

Send out this festive card and have a black cat cross your friend's path.

{thespottedsparrow}

If you can't stand the heat...

How was everyone's weekend? Mine was fun and full of birthdays- grandpa and multiple friends- which meant one night I had some [old person] pot roast dinner and one night I had the best Chicago pizza and drinks. This is a really exciting week because...drumroll...it's Chicago Marathon week! The marathon is on Sunday, so I am anxiously watching the weather and hoping for a new forecast that does not predict 47 degrees as a high.

Anyway... what I really want to talk about is how my kitchen countertops are red. What does one do with red countertops (that cannot be permanently altered)? My decorative energy right now is going into embracing the red and temporarily changing the rest of the kitchen.

I started by cleaning the mini-blinds so that they are white (no longer gray). I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a quick spruce up. I just removed them from the wall, laid them on the floor, sprayed them with some Mrs. Meyers, and used a wet cloth to wipe them down one-by-one. You would be amazed as to what the true color of your blinds actually is. I'm thinking about doing more though, and I think that this ribbon idea is a great idea to add something to some boring mini-blinds.

{Image from Little Green Notebook}

Another fabulous idea that I can't get enough of is to create your own fabric shades using simple mini-blinds.

{Image from Little Green Notebook}

Next idea... a colorful backsplash. Installing tile is pretty much out of the question since a) that's pretty permanent, b) this is a low-cost project, and c) I'm pretty sure it would be a disaster if I tried to do it alone. Any ideas??