Creative Juices Decor: October 2013

A Complete Wall FULL of Grandchildren Pictures - How to Make a Giant Wall Collage

So is it just my Mother in Law, or do other grandparents suffer from the "Must put up 1000 pictures of my grandchildren" syndrome?? ;-)

I have a feeling, it's a world wide obsession :-) I don't even have a lot of my kids' pictures up in my OWN house!

All to say, my MIL loves her pictures but the trick is making all those pictures look good and that's where I'm here to help :-) All you have to do is follow these 3 simple "rules".

Rule #1.

Buy frames that all have the same finish. If you already have each picture in a million different types of frames, SPRAY PAINT them so they all match. This may sound intimidating but I promise, it's not. Just take the pictures and glass out, lay them on a newspaper and spray away. DONE!

Having your frames relatively match (say like all a darker wood tone), it will take away some of the cluttered feeling from the collage. We don't want clutter - we want to display the 1000 photos in a nice, orderly fashion ;-)

Rule #2.

Once you have 1000 framed pictures - DO NOT ADD MORE, just switch them out or keep the other photo in the frame, just add the new one over it. Some day, if you want, you could go back and take out all the old photos to remember when they were little. (OK and it will make you feel a little less guilty that you are covering up that cute picture of them in the tub, it doesn't matter that they are 15 now, that was a cute tub picture - right!)

Rule #3.

USE THE WAX PAPER METHOD to figure out a great layout for your grandchildren wall collage. As I did this current layout with my friend, she said this, "Selina, there would be NO other way to do this - this is ingenious!" I wanted to just leave it at that, for her to assume that I was the creator of this absolutely ingenious idea but I had to open my big mouth and let her know that I just found it on the internet. HA! Along with almost all my ingenious ideas! I'm sorry, I am SO not into re-inventing the wheel.

Once you have those three rules in place - you got yourself a beautiful grand kid wall collage.

This is my MIL wall going up the stairs too.

So, who else out there suffers from the Grandchildren (or your own kid) Photo Obsession? Do you also have to count to be sure each family is covered equally? I had to tell my MIL I was SURE that non of us were counting. :-)

Enjoy your day and let me know if you try this out!!

Decorating With Your Thrift Store Collection of Silver Platters

As all of you know, I am a HUGE fan of the thrift store. I can not tell you how many hidden treasures I have found there. Diamonds in the rough my friends :-)

My latest was this amazing copper pot. I just think it fits my house well and has so much character.

Look at the TARNISHING! Real copper.....turning turquoise - love it!

It was a whopping 10 bucks (actually, even though I kid about the price, usually I don't spend more than 3 dollars on a home decor item!)

On the cheaper side, this little pitcher, I couldn't pass up was only $2.00 :-)

All to say, one thing that is very fun to do when you start thrift store shopping is look for a collection. Maybe it's globes, unique pottery plates or old vintage mirrors. It's just so exciting when you find a item that can be added to your collection. (My collection would be anything that looks OLD and WEATHERED that looks like you might find in a home in Italy)

Lately, I have run across so many posts of people using silver-plated trays (which you can get for cheap at the thrift store!) as a collection for their home decor purposes.

How about creating a large wreath out of the collection!

Itsy bits and pieces

How about adding a collection over the sink or hood area in your kitchen?

Cadwell Flake

Or place them sporadically on your wall for fun! I love the blue wall against the silver.

via apartment therapy

In Altered Artifacts blog she used command strips tape and made a wall mount of the silver "stuff" she found just in her cupboards. Such creativity!

This picture is just GORGEOUS! I love that the trays were brought down almost to the ground. (OK and yes, I love the wooden beams above too) ;-)

Up close!

And yet another wall collection using silver trays.....it just adds so much character to what could be a very boring wall.

All 3 photos I believe taken by Blayne Beecham

And lastly, putting up the trays outside would sure let them tarnish fast! I think it's lovely.

What do you guys think?

Ready to start searching your local thrift store for your next collection? You can get more inspiration and ideas on this post I shared with you about decorating with collections.

Some Fun Fall Home Decor - Pumpkins and Gourds

I had some fun this year with my iron bowl home decor pumpkin display :-)

Last year, it looked like this:

But this year......instead of pine cones, I added leaves!

My home and fall seem to just LOVE each other :-)

Here are some fun front door pictures!

To see the tutorial on how to turn old white planters into textured orange planters just follow the link.

And a cute dog :-)

And a cute girl :-)

I liked this idea too.....filling your non usable fireplace with pumpkins for fall.

And this just made me smile!

I'd love to be "Practically Perfect in Every Way" this Halloween (Getting my husband to be a jumping singing musician might be the challenging part!)

Keikolynn.com

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is RIGHT!

Ideas on How to Use Stone Veneer on an Interior Wall.

I personally can't get enough of bringing natural outside elements into the inside of a home. Clay, rocks, greenery, water.....you name it, if I can bring it inside and I have the budget, I will!

So today's post is some DECADENT eye candy regarding bringing stone (whether real or veneer) inside your house!

At first you might think, oh, I could never do that, or isn't it super hard?

Well actually no, it's not! Lowes put on a super simple YouTube video showing an easy way to do a stone veneer interior wall, but really, just think about it.......it is the same principle as adding tile to a wall.....not hard at all and the OUTCOME?

Oh my, Gorgeoso!

Mediterranean Entry by Los Altos General Contractors RJ Dailey Construction Co.

It wouldn't need to be a huge area in your home, what about just doing ONE accent wall like the one below in your master bedroom?

Or how about something like this one small wall in the dining room? It's such a neutral color scheme but the texture of the rock adds a whole new exciting element.

Ah, OK I'm starting to dream.....but isn't this so beautiful!

Traditional Kitchen by New York Architects & Designers Minion Gutierrez

As you can see by the picture below, bringing natural elements inside can make for such a peaceful surrounding.

This kitchen below.......

Reminds me of the Irish Lisheen castle kitchen my inlaws just visited!

ONE last dream picture......

C'mon folks, tell me if this was YOUR workout room you would be working out every day.....or maybe just sitting in the chair admiring you amazing stone walls - hee,hee!

Traditional Home Gym by Southlake Design-Build Firms Tatum Building Corp

Most photos came from Houzz.com

What do you guys think?

I know a lot of these pictures are more traditional but you can also add rock accents to a modern home and it looks amazing.....I love bringing in the old with the new.....make a space SO EXCITING!

Hope you got as inspired as I am!

My Favorite Fall Posts ~ From Kid Crafts to Home Decor

Fall over here in Idaho can be one of the prettiest times of the year. Bright orange, red and yellow start to fill up every street. It's starting to get cold, but not freezing so it just leaves this crisp air feeling all around you. Oh, and it's my birthday in the fall....so that makes it even better ;-)

My daughter playing in the leaves!

I have a bunch of easy fall craft and decor ideas on my blog that I have made with my own kids or put in my home....so I thought I'd just compile them for you to look through and get some great ideas!

This FUN fall craft involves shaved crayons and wax paper. Kids LOVE making them! They are also a great project to do in school. (Just have an adult run the iron)

Shaved Crayon Stained Glass Craft.

Another fun fall craft is these yummy Acorn Hershey kiss treats! You just use mini wafers and chocolates with a pretzel (or licorice) stem! Wrap them up in a decorated bag and give them as gifts to teachers or friends!