DIY Ceiling Medallion Decor for Light Fixtures

Why hello there. Apologies for the delayed post....ya know how life can get *sigh *.

Let me tell you a little story about these ugly ass light fixtures in my kitchen....... They're hideous! End of story. They needed to be replaced ASAP. 

So my Roommate and I decided to go for 2 of these bad boys. You can find them at Ikea for $49.99. 

( IKEA recommends LEDARE LED bulb GU10 400 lumen (5 pcs). Screws are sold separately).

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20262581/

I have NO CLUE about electrical wiring...so that's when my daddy came to the rescue! Please do not attempt to switch out light fixtures on  your own if you do not know / are a professional. Also, save those ugly ass light fixtures. You might need to switch them back if you decide to move out at the end of the lease lol

Unfortunately, because those light fixtures have never been replaced before, it left some nasty marks on the ceiling. I could not remove them.....so naturally....

 PAINTS and STENCILS TO THE RESCUE!

Things you will need:

1) Stencils of your choosing. I got mine from Amazon. (Martha Stewart collection)

2) Metallic Paint color of your choice. Also from Amazon.

3) A ladder to be able to reach your ceiling.

4) paint brushes or sponges.

5) tape

6) Damp towels or paper towels for cleaning

STEPS:

1) Place and tape your stencil into place. The tape makes it a lot easier...trust me!

2) Paint inside stencil.

3) Repeat all around your light fixture.

4) clean up any areas with the damp towels.

Final Product!

This becomes addictive...I'm trying to see what else I can stencil around lol.

HAVE FUN!

DIY End Table Makeover: Walmart Hack!

As I have mentioned before, I'm a sucker for glam. I saw these cheap tables below and fell in love! However....I was not feeling the color at all. Oh no girlfriend *snaps fingers*.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/No-Tools-Required-Set-of-2-End-Table-Set/20452323

A quick paint job and left over mirrors will glam these babies up in no time! All you need are..

1) Tables (Walmart)

2) E6000 Industrial Glue (Amazaon)

3) Four 12x12 Mirrors (Homedepot)

4) Gold Metallic Spray Paint (Homedepot)

5) Something to protect your floor from spray painting. <- i="">I got too excited and kina messed up my floors...opps!

I chose to leave the table tops and bottoms the same black.

I pretty much painted any parts that belonged to the legs in this Gold Metallic Color. I left them dry over night and went over any mistakes the next day. Additionally, the mirrors (which I had left over from my French Door Project - see previous posts) were glued in the center of the top and bottom pieces with the E6000 glue. This glue is no joke! It will glue just about everything! Let it dry over night to be safe. 

End Result!

Very easy to build. No tools required! Gotta love Walmart..

Here are one of the tables in my Living Room (which is still under construction FYI). This 3 set lamp is from Bed, Bath, and Beyond.

This project took me about 1 day (if you want to incorporate drying time). 

Hope you enjoyed this easy DIY!

HOME DIY: How to make Faux French Doors

I'm a sucker for French Doors. They are so chic and elegant. However, their prices are not always so chic and elegant. A quick and easy solution? MIRRORS! 

All you need: Mirrors, Extreme Mounting Tape, Ruler, Scissors,  Leveler, Measuring tape, a pencil, and any door you want.

I found this great deal of $10 for a 6 pack of 12x12 mirrors (Deco Mirrors) at Home Depot. I also found Scotch Extreme mounting tape there as well ($6.97). My dad lent me his leveler, which doubled as my ruler. Next, measure the dimensions of your door and bring that 6th grade math in *snaps fingers* ! If you have a mirror that's 12x12, you can pretty much play around with figures to see how much space you want in between mirrors. Unfortunately for me......I forgot about the door handle, which threw off my measurements and I realized too late. It's ok...you can learn from my mistakes! Once you have your measurements down, lightly sketch out your borders on the door....this will help, trust me!

Simply cut and place small pieces of tape onto the back of every mirror. I placed a total of 9 small pieces, just to be safe. Peel off the protection part of the tape and press the mirror onto your door!

  Before: Simple & Boring Door                                                 After: Chic Faux French Door!

Interior Design Tip: Mirrors placed in front of light, bounce light back to visually add more space into a room. Thus, tricking the eye into making a space seem bigger.

Luckily I have a window right across the hall from this door. The picture above shows how light is bounced back.

Thanks again for reading! Don't forget to subscribe and comment below. 

Until next time...ciao!

DIY Kitchen Makeover for Renters: Floors

   If you're like me, simplicity does not excite you. Who doesn't want some excitement in his/her life? Ok yes...floors are not THAT exciting...but redesigning is! The floors in my kitchen were not that horrible, but they did not go with the Loft-gray-kina-theme I want to execute in the future. I took a trip down to my  local Home Depot and came cross this beauty.

I can't remember the exact name. But i know it was under $1 per Vinyl Tile in the Flooring Section. I love these things!

 Tip: If you're a righty, start on the left side of your area. If you're a lefty, start on the right side. It will make things easier! Rip off the back plastic paper and place on desired tile. That's it! 

 When you get to tight/small areas, these things are super easy to cut with regular scissors.

 Flush a piece of tile in the area you need to fill and place another straight edge (in my case, another piece of tile) and try to draw a straight line from one corner of a done tile, to the other corner of the uncovered side. You should end up with a shape for the piece you are trying to fill ( I made A LOT of mistakes so...no worries if it's not perfect. No one ever is).

BEFORE:                                                                   AFTER:

  A little close up por favor!

 My kitchen it tiny, so it took me about 20 mins to finish. I'm not too sure how the removal process will be when my lease is up...hopefully not too bad. lol. However, there you go! Another quick and cheap update to change up a Renter's Apartment!

Until next time! Ciao!

DIY Kitchen Makeover for Renters - Back splash Redesign.

    As a renter in my first apartment....I am  VERY limited in what I can redesign in my place (otherwise my Security Deposit fee will go bye-bye).  My new apartment was cute, but not the fabulous-girly-glamorous-chic pad I had always imagined it would be. Let's start with the kitchen shall we? Do you hate the sight of your tiles? Need a quick way to change it up on a budget? SMART TILES is the way to go!

check em out here ->   http://www.thesmarttiles.com/en_us/

This company makes removable self-adhesive tiles that are easy to install and cut! *angels singing*

  My ugly ass back-splash in my ugly ass kitchen....*throws up*

I ordered the 'Muretto Prairie' for $7.98 for per every 10.20in x 9.10in tile.

You can already see the difference one little rectangle can make! It looks and feels like the real thing ladies and gents.

TA DAA! Took me a total of 2 hours to cut and install (I got lazy and took mini breaks in between). You can find them in your local homedept, etc. But i found them cheaper on their actual site. They have a wide variety of options and prices. However, I must warn you....try and battle to control yourself to not buy out their entire inventory in one click of a mouse!

Stay tuned for more DIY home renovations for Renters. Enjoy!