She's Crafty | Bright and Fearless Decorating

Are you craving an immediate change to your interior decor? Do you feel as though a few spaces in your life need a mega dose of color and a touch of whimsy? Are you stumped as to how to pull a colorful room together? Well, my answer is yes to all three so I pulled two books off the shelf in hopes of getting some inspiration for home and office decor.

Feast your eyes on these book covers:

Bright Bazaar: Embracing Color for Make-You-Smile Style by Will Taylor.

Decorate Fearlessly! Using Whimsy, Confidence, and a Dash of Surprise to Create Deeply Personal Spaces by Susanna Salk.

Beautiful, right?!

Bold too. Both of these books have style ideas that reach way beyond the average or typical.

If you want to get some pattern mixing inspiration I suggest checking out Decorate Fearlessly. As you can plainly see on the cover, a space can exist that mixes over a dozen different patterns and it will still work. Also, your pug will most likely approve the combination. Although my brain can't handle that much pattern mixing, I did enjoy the creative texture and color combinations featured in the book. Almost every single one I would have never thought of before.

Kitchen decor from Decorate Fearlessly.

The next book, Bright Bazaar, is bold and whimsical. The focus of the book is on learning to use colors and textures effectively for a style that is one-of-a-kind. Will Taylor packs Bright Bazaar with inspirational case studies, tons of tips, and plenty of ideas.

Looking at bright colors and white walls in Bright Bazaar.

Many of the spaces Taylor features in his book contain decorative objects that are obviously DIY and not something you can find at the store. Taylor doesn't give step-by-step instructions for the pieces but if you're the crafty sort you can probably figure out how to replicate what you see. Like the wall string art below.

Be forewarned, walls, I realllly like this idea!

Geometric Gems from Sea Lemon DIY

Now for some DIY. Sea Lemon is one of my favorite craft gurus. She uploads video tutorials to YouTube and I discovered her while researching how to make bound books. She uploaded a video recently showing viewers how to construct 3D geometric gems to display on the wall or set on a table, which is perfect for me since I can't get enough geometric designs in my life and I have a thing for simple line representations of gems.


I see a great many of these gems in my future. if you're interested in finding out how to make these wall gems, click here for the youtube tutorial. All you need is some wooden dowels, hot glue, and some paint. I was able to find all the stuff I need to make all four designs at my local craft store.



Malia

Teens Only | Pardon This Personal Question

What does your bedroom say about you? Are you a 15 year old living in a room with walls covered in pink fairies or blue and red trains? Is the floor of your room barely visible because it's covered in clothes, school stuff, and other collections from your day-to-day life? Do you share a room with a sibling? Do you avoid going into your room until it's time to go to bed because it's just not fun or relaxing?

Your bedroom should be your sanctuary. It should be the place where you go to relax, think, read, dream, breathe, and feel inspired.

I know it can be tough to do a major makeover of your bedroom. How many of us have $5,000...or even $500....to really re-do our sleep space? But I've learned a few tricks that might help you make some changes in your bedroom that will make it a place you can really enjoy...and be proud of!

I check out decorating books from the library and write down ideas. A couple of my favorites are:

Super Suite: The Ultimate Bedroom Makeover Guide for Girls -- by Mark Montano -- has some cool ideas. And even though the title says it's for girls, I think guys wouldn't mind black and white poster headboard idea.

Another favorite is Nate Berkus' Home Rules: Transform the Place You Live Into a Place You'll Love. Nate's the famous designer guy who has made over rooms for tons of celebrities, including Oprah. And even though I can't afford many of the things he does, I still get great ideas from his books. Many of his ideas can be modified and done very economically (that means, on the cheap!).





I also check out websites like Pinterest for ideas. Basically, I'll take ideas wherever I can find them!

And then I get creative. I check out local thrift stores for prints, bed linens (wash them or have them professionally cleaned first), and I also rummage through my house to find things that might work better in my bedroom. (Just ask your parents first, of course.) Oh yes, I also go to garage sales! I save up my money if I need to purchase something new. I look for sales. I have a very specific idea in mind and then I wait until I find exactly what I want...on sale....and try not to get impatient when the room of my dreams doesn't come together in one day!

I shared a bedroom with my 2 sisters until I was 15. I know your pain if you're still sharing a room. Even if the only space that is yours is the few feet around your bed, you can still make it your own.

Of course you need to have a discussion with your parents. But even if all you can do is a good cleaning/organizing of your space, do it! You'll go to sleep each night in a much more relaxing place, and you'll wake up truly refreshed and ready to face each day.

So here's to restful sleep in your own little sanctuary!