DIY

If you had to choose between dishing out almost a grand for an upholstered bench from Horchow or making your own for a mere $50, I think it’s safe to say we’d all head straight for the hardware store. Nan from You Could Make That shows that it doesn’t take an experienced carpenter/upholsterer to make a bench or ottoman from scratch. Nan simply used a piece of plywood and table legs for the base and then got a seamless upholstered finish by adding  a pleated skirt and decorative trim. Not only is the end product beautiful but super strong and sturdy!

When Mable from Lilato Laka came across a retro kitchen at Pottery Barn Kids, it was love at first sight. Of course, the price wasn’t all that lovable, so Mable pulled out her tools! For a grand total of $60, Mable transformed a used entertainment center into her daughter’s dream kitchen that is complete with tile, a window, a dishwasher, and tons of other kitchen gadgets. Mable is new to woodworking so you can only imagine her pride in building a piece her daughter loves and plays on for hours!

In preparation for the day of love, Lidy from Hello Lidy had a little fun recreating some heart mugs she spied at West Elm that were “modern, fun and playful.” Following in line with the year’s metallic trend, Lidy used a gold leaf pen to add her hearts to plain white mugs for a quick transformation. This is a project anyone can tackle, and Lidy points out that imperfection is just part of the beauty.

After his wife fell in love with a pricey art print, Matt of theDIYvillage set out to create an affordable knock-off of this beautiful wall art for her as a Valentine’s Day Gift. He did it for only $11 using some pine boards and Luan. How’s that for affordable? Matt’s knock-off is so spot-on his wife thought it was the original when he gave it to her!

You may remember the painted safari print ornaments that Morena of Morena’s Corner created for Christmas. Well Morena found a way to incorporate the ornaments into her daily décor by turning them into decorative finials. If animal prints aren’t your thing, Morena points out that you can use ornaments with any design to make a finial you’ll love.