Better Cheaper Dog Bed

My dog Ricki is notorious for destroying her nice expensive dog beds every 6 months.
 She just scratches them to shreds!
She is also very sneaky and loves to get up on my Son's bed, which is not allowed,
but she is a Beagle and is very disobedient.

So, as an experiment, I let her sleep on a $19 Ikea doona with a cheap cover from an Op shop which I placed in a basket I found on the side of the road.
 To my surprise, when she dug at it, it didn't tear or come apart like her other dog beds because it is not structured.
 It just fluffed up nicely around her.

This is just perfect.  She can fluff and fluff as much as she wants to.

I think she is pretty happy.

And I am happy I didn't spend too much.

It is easily washable as well.  Win Win Win!

Another doona I bought at Ikea for around $19 now lives in the Dog house outside and Ricki is free to arrange it however she likes. 

 The best part is, she can't destroy it.

And I can always wash it!

Flip Flop the Bed $ 0 !!

Before,
The bed was right in the entryway.

After !!
Time:   about 2 hours

Cost of materials:    $ 0

We flipped the room around and put the bed on the far wall.
And the storage unit where the bed was.
We added a few toys to the shelves that mixed and matched.

 The room becomes instantly more inviting without the bed blocking the entry.

Before
There were 2 boxes stacked in the corner

After
*note: the boxes became the new side tables

Before

 After...the entry is now free and clear and the perfect place to play.

The wall decals were still age appropriate,

 so we left them on for now.

After

 Rourke Loves his new room,

but more importantly the fact that we included his own original painting of...

"Optimus Prime" the Transformer.

I love this painting too Rourke.
And I know how much you love Transformers!!
We just had to include it for you.
Not bad for a 4 year old.

Rourke's Mum made this lovely piece of art from magnets and paper.
I think it is a lovely touch to add something handmade.

Keep the shelves simple but boyish....

Rourke's Mum is very clever and made these 6 framed pieces by
framing fun pages from a vintage dictionary.
Very cute!

Not bad for  nearly 2 hours work and $ 0 dollars.

Working around a design inspiration

Pick something you are drawn to or has special meaning.  
 For this room we chose a vintage Boy Scout tea towel and framed it. 
 We found a few unused items from around the house and painted them a vibrant blue to match the blue in the new art work.
*The piggy bank was free from the bank, but it was pink, which Zach didn't like.  
It was his choice to have it painted, which worked perfectly.

We also framed this old t-shirt because it has the same vintage boyish feel.

We made a cushion for the bed from another cool vintage tea towel with similar colours
.
 The main art work above the bed is a canvas covered with Zach's old baby blanket from Nest.  What a perfect use for something he loved but doesn't use anymore.

 He is now 4 years old, hence the vintage number 4.

 We also framed 2 cute cards he had received for his birthday and added some tiny wooden figures on top of the frames for a bit of playfulness.

 I found these little chairs at an Op shop and recovered them in different retro fabrics that matched the bold colours of the vintage tea towels.

Everything in this little boy's room has special meaning or was something we found that had no current use.   By spray painting some odd unusable items, the room looks co-ordinated with little cost.  And there is nothing in here too precious to play with.

*It can also easily convert to a lovely guest room since we kept a neutral white and grey base.

Thank you cards to share.

Just in....a few new testimonials and thank you cards to share.

"I had been meaning to update my sons room for a while, but like a number of projects,  it became a "work in progress". That was until I mentioned it to Niki! 

Niki, with her infectious enthusiasm was the inspiration to get 'stuck in'. Her flair and resourcefulness made items, I considered ordinary, exciting and full of fun! Her ability to stage and arrange items in a unique and visually appealing manner,  left the bedroom styled to little boy perfection. 

It was loads of fun and definitely one of the cheapest decorating projects I have done to date! Scott loves his "big boy" room. 

Thank you Niki for doing what you do so well!"

Dana, Beaumaris.

"Dearest Niki,  

Again many thanks for styling Oli’s room.  He absolutely loves his “new room and is spending more and more time in there playing lego etc.  It has made such a difference having the furniture positioned where it is now - I Love It! Your talents are extraordinary!  Keep up the good work."  Natalie, Armadale.

Dear Niki,
"We wanted to thank you again for helping make our house look so lovely.  We wanted to let you know we sold early at Auction and couldn't be happier with what you have done for us. " Northcote.

White washing away the 80's

My friend Kelly has embraced a new found love for refurbishing old things.

So much so that she offered to help a friend refurbish two very 1980's bed-side tables.

 Her friend loved how they turned out.

A fresher white washed look made such a difference.

To tie the newly white washed drawers in with the rest of the room,
I suggested Kelly's friend get some pine frames from Ikea
 to white-wash and hang above the bed.

Vintage Ice Cream Parlour Sings on a budget

Planning my kids birthday parties so close together has not been easy this year.
At least they have agreed on a theme,

VINTAGE ICE CREAM PARLOUR!

No worries,
I found these awesome signs on line and copied them in mirror image onto photo paper,
then painted Gel Medium on some wood.

I then laid down the mirror image,
rolled out the bubbles,
waited 24 hrs to dry,
then peeled away the paper.

Wah..Lah...

Cool looking Vintage signs for the party at a mere cost of materials.
And they can be used again and again !!

Leather Scraps to Handmade Wallet.

Awhile ago I made some white leather cushions.  

I had this tiny piece of white leather left over ,

and I hate to waste things,

so I made this cute little wallet with the scraps.

Wood and Silver Necklace

 My 2 year old wanted to play with our craft box,

and I rediscovered these cute little wooden hearts.

Now that I have a new drill press,

I thought it might be a good idea to put a little hole in the top and

add a bit of Silver jewellery that fell off another bracelet.

I tacked it on and add a Hemp sting.

Wah... Lah...

 Something a bit unique and different.

I am so glad I kept that Silver charm that fell off another piece of jewellery.

She can't wait to add it to her
Jewellery Box.

Wooly Warmer Tea Lights

It is winter now, and I love to lite tea lights at night once the kids have gone to bed.  

The more summery doily ones were not cutting it, so I decided to make some wintery wooly ones instead.

I got some Ikea glasses, some doubled sided tape and some good quality fluffy wool.....

Good fluffy, proper wool, with some other mixes
seems the best for the most cozy look.

I love the neon pink fuzzy wool...so cozy.

They look lovely lit up at night! 

Even a very thin Angora yarn can look amazing carefully spun around the glass.  I think I might make some more of these.

Needing a bit of Neon

I am loving all the little hints of Neon and bright colours I have seen lately,

So I figured I needed a bit of neon in my day.

 The easiest way I could think of was

half dipping this wooden bracelet.

 So simple and so fun and so bright.

I can't wait to wear it today!

Revamp a Lamp

A client had this quite unique looking retro lamp, 

but she really liked the dual wooden and ceramic base.

Instead of painting it.....

A Funky New Lamp Shade does the trick

I covered the lamp shade with some quality black fabric....

and the outcome,

she was really pleased with.