DIY

Melissa of This Girl’s Life recreated a piece of woodwork art she liked from Pottery Barn to better fit her budget and color-scheme. Melissa knew it was going to be an easy DIY (since it’s literally just pieces of wood!) and had the entire piece of artwork completed in less than a day. Even purchasing all the wood for the project, Melissa still spent only what it would have cost in taxes had she purchased directly from Pottery Barn. You could save even more if you’ve got wood scraps stored away!

Jennifer from Blissfully Ever After decided to give an outdated picture frame from a swap meet some love and turn it into a piece of vintage, industrial alphabet art for her son’s playroom. With some leftover paint and her own custom printable, Jennifer pulled it off for a whopping $1.79. That’s quite the saving compared to her $329 inspiration! Wowzers!

Amanda from Burlap and Denim loves the effect of lighting in design. Throw in a vintage-industrial vibe, and the girl is head over heals! That’s what propelled Amanda to create her own marquee star using rather unusual materials. Amanda’s star is not only incredibly less expensive than those offered at some of our favorite designer retailers but also quite a bit bigger!

Aly from Entirely Eventful Day wanted a beautiful weathered wood étagère from Restoration Hardware for her master bathroom. The problem? She didn’t have $700 to purchase it. What Aly did have was an old, metal, over-the-toilet shelving system. Aly refabbed the shelf with a fresh coat of glossy white paint and some wood to give it a more substantial and expensive look like her inspiration.

Griffin from The Design Itch was inspired by a woven ottoman from Crate & Barrel to make her own. Initially Griffin thought she could simply wrap a garden stool in nautical rope but discovered this solution would cost her way more than simply buying it from Crate & Barrel. So instead Griffin thought outside the box and glued together two ceramic pots and wrapped them in rope. Her knock-off has a similar form and the same wonderful texture as the original.