Designer Inspired

 

I love designer fashion, jewelry, home decor, you know name it!  And then there's reality.  I'm a stay-at-home mom with two kids.  We buy diapers and wipes.  We pay for college classes and books.  We have a mortgage and a car payment.  Like most people, we live on a budget.  And, honestly, I don't think I could spend $1,000 on a purse anyway. :)  However, what I love to do is draw inspiration from high-end designers and brands.  When we found out we were expecting, I started browsing Serena and Lily, Restoration Hardware Baby and Child, and Pottery Barns Kids for ideas.  I came across this room from Serena and Lily.

 

 

 

 

I loved the navy and white stripes with the grass green accent color.  I felt like it was a great crisp, clean look that was all-boy. :)  So, I totaled the cost of the bedding for the Serena and Lily room.  Just the bedding - duvet, pillows, sheets, etc.  This price does not include any furniture or decor.  And the grand total for this look was $836.  Gorgeous, but waaay out of our budget! :)

 

 

 

 

And this is a shot of Cole's Serena and Lily inspired nursery.  For the fabric backdrop, I found this rugby stripe shower curtain at Target for $15!  I ordered the letters from an Etsy seller and painted them with Serena and Lily paint in Grass green (Serena and Lily paint sample, $6).  For the pennant banner, I ordered free fabric swatches from Serena and Lily and bought the other fabrics at Hancock for $3.  I ordered the crib sheet from Serena and Lily when they were having a 40% off Nursery event, and the crib skirt was another DIY project ($6).  For the green accent pillow, I covered a pillow I already had with an old cable-knit sweater I didn't wear anymore (FREE)!  So, the grand total for all of Cole's bedding and crib wall decor came to $97! :) 

 

 

 

 

Although I couldn't afford to order all of the items straight from Serena and Lily, I was able to create a similar look for a fraction of the cost.  I'd say our motto around here is design on a dime, but it's actually pretty on a penny! :)

 

Do you guys have any awesome tips for creating high-end looks for less?

Something Blue

 I'm sure you've all heard of the sweets stylist, Amy Atlas, but if you haven't, be sure to check her out!  Her work is absolutely amazing and her dessert tables are incredibly inspiring!  As I was brainstorming ideas for my sister's bridal shower, I came across a gorgeous dessert table she designed for the Wedding Library that gave me an idea for the theme.

In other words,

 

 

We decided on a color scheme and theme that was perfect for a bridal shower:

  

 

 

The invitations were designed by Amber from Announcing You.  She always does such a wonderful job! :)

 

 

I used leftover wood I had from another DIY project and fabric from Hancocks to create the backdrop.  I was so excited when I found the silhouette mirror for $14.99 at Ross!

 

 

The pearl Sixlets and candy scoops were from Party City and everything else was purchased at Sam's or Walmart.

 

 

I found the frame at T.J. Maxx and painted and distressed it to give it a more vintage feel.

 

 

 

I ended up spending just under $75 for all of the decor, desserts, candy, etc. :)

 

 

I love drooling over Amy's work and using it as inspiration for my own budget-friendly, much less perfect dessert tables!  Her "Perfectly Preppy" dessert buffet already has me brainstorming for Cole's first birthday party! :) 

 

 

 

Easy Peasy Dessert Table

This past weekend we hosted a couples get together at our community clubhouse.  We grilled out, played games, and had a great time of fellowship!  We played a hilarious round of charades and a game called Mad Gab that I absolutely love! :)  We wanted to have a theme for the event that played off the 'Battle of the Sexes' idea.  With it being football season, I started brainstorming football terms and girly words that started with the same letter.  I ended up deciding on Pigskins and Pearls and thought brown and pink would be perfect colors for the decorations.  I knew I wanted to do a dessert table, but was limited on time and money.

I made the backdrop using foam presentation boards I already had covered with wrapping paper from the dollar section in Target.  I used posterboard and a printer to make the sign.  The four square serving trays are actually china dinner plates I found at Target on sale for $2 a piece.  I added pink scrapbooking paper to them for a pop of color.

 

To save on time, I bought everything pre-made except for the sugar cookies.  Although I made these, they were super simple and easy.  Pillsbury pre-made sugar cookie dough, Betty Crocker cookie icing, and pearl sprinkles.  The hubby said they were the best cookies he's ever had!  And they end up coming out to under $.50 a cookie versus $3 or more a piece for specialty cookies.

 

I lined the cake stand with a piece of pink and white chevron scrapbooking paper and bought ready to serve mini cupcakes.

 

The apothecary jars held Whoppers and strawberry milkshake Whoppers.  We also had chocolate covered oreos, strawberry wafer cookies, and football shaped brownies.

 

It took less than two hours to make and set everything up, and best of all, the total cost for this dessert table came in at just under $25! :)

 

Do you guys have any budget-friendly tips for dessert tables?  Do share! :)

Get All the Good Dirt Here!

 I have a confession to make.  I'm an apothecary jar addict.  I seriously have a slight obsession with them!  ;)  They're in the bathroom, kitchen, and have now found their way into our laudry room. 

 

 

I'm hoping to give this room, like all of the other rooms in our house, a bright, fresh makeover soon. 

 

And my inspiration is one of my favorite laundry rooms of all time!

 

 

 

 

I'm hoping maybe a mini-makeover will make laundry more fun.  Probably wishful thinking! ;)

 

Do you guys have any fun laundry room inspiration to share?

 

 

 

 

Yes, Master! (Bedroom, that is!)

 

Here's the very first before picture of our master bedroom before we moved in! :) 

 

 

 

You can see the crazy changes this room has gone through here. 

 

 

And here's the design board I put together for our new space!

 

 

We are slowly getting there, and I can't wait to share the 'before' and 'after, after, after' pics! ;)

 

What do you guys think?  Color overload or much improved? :)

 

 

 

 

 

Chalk Art

Have you all seen the chalkboard art that seems to be popping up everywhere?  I've been thinking about making a DIY chalkboard menu for our kitchen.  Something like this, maybe?
 

I've recently seen some awesome examples of just how cool chalk art can be.

I mean, how gorgeous is this custom chalkboard art by Dana Tanamachi?  Amazing!  I would love to hire her to do one for us, but I'm guessing she's a little out of our price range.  Oh well, I'll just drool over her work anyway! :)

I found this print on Etsy that I thought was adorable.  You can actually customize it with your own family name and recipe.  And it's only $35 for an 11x14 print.  Not too shabby! :)

And one of my favorite Etsy shops recently came out with this adorable chalkboard invitation.  $15?  I think so! :)

What do you guys think?  Gotta have or leave it in the dust? ;)

Budget Nursery Design

Decorating a nursery is challenging period, but decorating a nursery on a small budget is extremely difficult.  After doing Cole's nursery for less than $200, I can say I speak from experience. ;)

Here are a few tips for keeping your nursery budget in check:

1.  Reuse and repurpose as many items as you can.  "Shop" your house!

2.  Scour thrift stores, consignment shops, craigslist, etc.

3.  If you see something you love that is just too expensive, do a DIY version instead. :)

4.  Etsy.com can be your best friend.

5.  Create a budget and stick to it!

6.  Finally, don't be fooled into thinking that you need to spend $1,000 on a crib, $500 on bedding, $600 for a rocker, and so on.  If you're not careful, you could easily buy a car for what you spent on your nursery! :)

For example, this crib is quite lovely:

But not for that price!  No thanks! :)

One of my favorite tips for creating designer spaces on a dime is finding high-end rooms and pieces to use as inspiration.  Once I find something that I love, I make it my goal to achieve the same look within my budget. 

When looking at cribs for Blake, I fell in love with the crib on the right from Restoration Hardware.  But it was out of our price range at $1049 plus a hefty freight charge.  I eventually found this look-a-like by Carters at Babies 'R' Us for $399.  Much better! :)

And if you're really looking for a deal, Graco has this crib for $149:

Not too shabby! :)

Just remember, you don't have to spend thousands of dollars to create beautiful spaces!  Never thought I'd be saying that!  Boy, has five years of marriage to my wonderful hubby changed me! ;)