DIY Life

We talked headboards last week, and I can't help but shake the fact that I desperately need to spruce my own up a bit. As usual, I'm taking a cue from our fellow friends at ShelterPop. This lovely round-up has me craving a Saturday afternoon with a bit of fabric, plywood and my handy dandy staple gun.

This handy ReadyMade tutorial is one of my favorites, as I'm an avid read-in-bed kinda gal. There's nothing comfortable about stacking a few pillows against a hard, upright headboard, so this design is perfect for me. And with just a few tools, the process couldn't be easier!

Don't see one you like? Blogger pioneer Grace Bonney from Design*Sponge gave us a sneak peek of her own bedroom, including a DIY video of this gorgeous homemade headboard that's fit for a queen. Or, you could check out Curbly's round-up of 10 Fantastically DIY-able headboards.

Happy dreaming!

Anyone who has ever tried to outfit their bedroom knows that bedroom furniture is not cheap. So what do you do if you are short on cash, yet long for a stylish room? You do-it-yourself, of course.

There are a few things to consider before you begin. Think about your decorating style. Are you looking for something as a short term solution or are you looking to invest the time and energy into making a headboard that will last your for the long haul. How much time and energy do you really want to spend making a headboard? Do you want to make your headboard from items that you already own, then look around your house, garage, or attic at things that you have laying around that could be repurposed.

Here are some ideas to get you started.

Think beyond the metal scroll screen. There are many types of screens out there that can suit your own personal taste. You can even use vintage shutters hinged together.

Is a noisy mattress disturbing your ZZZ's? While those squeaks and creaks are mighty annoying, don't assume there's nothing you can do about them. There are, in fact, quite a few quick and easy tricks worth trying.

1. If your mattress is not a pillow-top, turn it over. Any improvement? If not, then:

2. Rotate the mattress (so that the foot end becomes the head end and vice versa). A change in weight distribution on the springs can make all the difference. Regular rotation is recommended anyway by mattress manufacturers, just to ensure even wear.

Fabric: so very versatile, necessary, and perfect for any crafting need. For me, the hardest part of purchasing fabric is choosing which fabric I want to take home. I usually end up going overboard with my purchases, as I can never decide on just one color.

My girls were to share a room, so they each would have had their own twin bed separated by a night table. Since they carry my genes, I know that they'd get bored very easily with their headboards. The perfect solution? Cover the headboards with coordinating fabric that they picked out themselves.

Fabric, scissors, and a staple gun are all you need to have on hand to create your one-of-a-kind headboard. Just staple the fabric to the headboard, working outwards from the center. Don't pull too tight, as you don't want to stretch and tear the fabric. When you are done, stand back and admire your job-well-done.

Looking for more headboard covering ideas? Check out my previous post on covering a wood headboard with fabric, and Brian's post on more creative headboard ideas.

[via: Craft]

Here's a great idea for bedside storage. Might I add, it's a great idea because it's really easy and, assuming you already have a tote bag to spare, it's free! Makezine put me onto this idea from Five Whys: repurpose an old tote bag as an underbed pocket.

You will need:

1. An old cloth tote bag
2. Scissors
3. Needle and thread or (even better!) a sewing machine
   
4. About 10 minutes to an hour of your time, depending on your sewing skills

Cut the bag down each side, starting at the top end and ending about halfway down. Fold the cut flap down inside the bag. Fold and sew the cut side edges to prevent fraying. Next, lay the bag's handles and top half under your mattress, letting the newly-created pocket hang down the side of the bed. The weight of the mattress should keep the bag in place. Voila! A place for bookmarks, magazines and other odds and ends.

Want to make a tote bag? Anna can tell you how. Oh, and she knows how to make a bag from old jeans, too!

Shabby chic is an interesting home decorating style. It's almost as if you are trying to give your home a haphazard look, slightly worn out, a little bit mis-matched, traditional with a twist. Originally seen in European country homes that were expensive to keep up, shabby chic was borne out of the necessity to keep home decor costs to a minimum.

Certain design elements are associated with shabby chic: fringe and tassels, different types and patterns of fabric used in the same room, distressed surfaces, and flea market finds.

After the break, we'll reveal a few tips and tricks to help you get this look on your own.

The last few weeks, I have been waking up at night, cold and unable to figure out why. Part of it is that with the warmer weather, the heat comes on less. I get that. I think, though, that the real culprit is my down comforter.

What used to be a fluffy, warm, and cozy part of my bed now looks flat and lifeless; all the insulating properties have gone with the poof.

I know I was not supposed to lay or sit on top of the comforter so as not to damage the down fibers. Since we neglected to tell the 90-pound dog who sleeps with us, we've got one flat comforter. So I took these steps to help re-fluff it, hoping for more insulation and warmth:

When I get a flyer in the mail that is advertising sale prices on their furniture, I quickly browse through it, and then pitch the flyer into the burn bag. Even though the furniture is on sale, it is still way too expensive for my budget.

If you are in need of a new sofa or loveseat, check out diydiva's memory foam queen sized bed turned loveseat. By buying a bed on eBay and using an electric saw, she transformed the bed into a cool loveseat, complete with custom slipcover.

What more do you want for under $200? I think her loveseat is adorable, and is nice to have especially if you have pets that are on an evil mission to destroy any furniture you may own.

It's funny to think that we need to teach ourselves how to calm down, but it's true. We spend so much of the day on over-drive that when the time comes to decompress, we're not really sure where to begin. It is worth carving out time in the day for some calming rituals. Lifehacker points us to 12 ideas for establishing a calming routine, which I think are incredibly useful.

The tip that really caught my eye was this one about establishing a bedtime routine.

Worms are our friends.

Every active or potential organic gardener needs to know this one important fact; If you want a successful organic gardening experience, you gotta' have worms.

Worms are an incredibly essential part of the health of organic gardens and plants because worms do what modern agriculture accomplishes by utilizing chemical saturation tactics. Worms help deliver food to your plant's root system. Worms snack on that cow manure you spread on your garden. They greedily eat the stuff and then redistribute the nutrients throughout your garden in a form which is highly usable for your plants. Additionally, the burrows which worms create when moving under the soil in your garden, make invaluable deep irrigation channels.

If you garden organically, give your garden the worm test. Take three shovels of dirt out of your garden and look for worms. If you cannot find a worm within a three shovel sample, you ain't got enough worms. If you can find three to five worms in that sample, you have plenty -o- worms. If you find more than five, you have a tremendous amount of worm food in your garden!