Archive | Decorating RSS feed for this section

Learning New Skills

30 Nov

What’s the you say? You’re in need of someone who know how to use a power drill? Well you’re in luck – because I officially do! And here is the proof:

My roommate’s parents got us this coat hanger when we first moved in (7 months ago) but without a drill we weren’t able to put it up. With the onset of winter and the need for somewhere to put our wet outerwear I decided it was time to buckle down and get the darn thing mounted. My mom was kind enough to bring a power drill by and my mission was set. When I took it out of the bag however I was suddenly overwhelmed. Power tools scare me and I had never used screw anchors. For a moment I thought to myself – I’ll just wait until my roommate’s boyfriend comes by and ask him to do it. But then the wise words my mom has tried to instill in me since I was a little girl came to mind – “Always try and do it yourself”.

For as long as I can remember when my mom was doing some random task like fixing the toilet or polishing an antique she would say “come in here so you can see how this is done” and I’d spend a few minutes wiggling pipes or sand papering drawers. It didn’t seem like much at the time but now that I have my own place I am overwhelmingly grateful that she instilled that independence in myself and my sisters. Without her encouragement that coat hanger might still be sitting on the floor of my kitchen. But instead it is proudly displaying a pair of winter coats. And I expect it to successfully hold up many more in the coming winter months.

P.S. I feel it is important to also note that it’s all about a learning process. My roommate and my efforts to get this device up could easily be made into an episode of “2 (Dumb) Broke Girls”. Part of the instruction manual was used to turn the oversized drilled oval into an appropriately sized screw hole and there is a slight but distinct angle to the rack itself. But hey! It’s the effort that counts and a new skill is always appreciated. So never be afraid – just give something new a try!

51 Days Until Christmas!!!

3 Nov

I continue my weekly countdown ’til Christmas with the next awesome thing

Christmas Decorating!

Two days ago I was given the high honor of decorating my Starbucks store for the holidays. And sure, lots of people grumbles “already decorating for Christmas? Halloween was yesterday” at me as they went by but I couldn’t care less! I got to wrap up gift baskets and put together Christmas trees and wear a santa hat all day! To those grumblers I say – this isn’t back to school, people. This isn’t like in Summer vacation when pictures of Bic pens and snazzy back-packs flash across your TV screen on the 6th of July and you want to throw something…this is Christmas! As far as I am concerned, it could not come early enough. There are twinkling lights everywhere and joyful songs on the radio 24/7, what’s not to love?

My family goes all out with decorating. We get a tree that’s two stories high, unload at least a dozen boxes of ornaments, and various nick knacks are laid in every corner of the house (they blend in so well that many don’t get discovered and put away until February!)

This year I have the added new challenge of decorating my own, much smaller, apartment. There’s no room for a full on tree but I would love to put a small on on the kitchen table or something and hang a couple of ornaments on it. Any advice on the best place to find one when the time comes? Since I won’t get to be at my family home as much as I usually am (because of work), I really want my apartment to feel like Christmas as soon as December 1st hits. So if you have any advice on how to decorate a smaller place for the holidays -I’m all ears!!


Dollar Store Flower Arranging

24 Aug

For my birthday my friend gave me a lovely bouquet of flowers which I then arranged into a wonderful centerpiece which brightened the kitchen table for several days.

However, as flowers are bound to do, they died – leaving a sad and empty table behind. Fortunately the dollar store stepped in and solved all my problems. They had an entire section devoted to fake flowers and from there I managed to collect a cheap collection of flowers that won’t die on me!

For the base I simply filled an old plastic pineapple container with pebbles and an assortment of fake flower petals. Then I arranged the flowers. It would have been easier if I had a pair of wire cutters to break the flowers apart but I made do and just did a lot of bending and folding.

Not the most glorious arrangment in the world but it’s a start! The kitchen looks far more lively and on top of that I have been introduced to a whole new world of dollar store decorating. All I need is a pair of wire cutters and my house will become a fake flower oasis!

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 118 other followers