before + after: kitchen bookshelf

 

My aunt found this handy bookshelf in the trash outside of my building on move-in day. It fit perfectly in my kitchen between the two large windows, and has stayed there ever since. 

At first I was a little ashamed to drag a piece of someone else’s garbage into my home, but having salvaged the shelf and a few weeks later, two new picture frames, I’ve started looking forward to garbage day. Free is free and there’s nothing a thick coat of paint can’t fix—right?

Plus, as always, a few of my favourite pins featuring open-concept kitchen cupboards and shelves.

** You can find absolutely everything shown in this post at Indigo, Ikea or wherever your neighbour happens to toss their trash. 

images clockwise from top Janne Peters  |  Apartment Therapy  |  handz Etsy Shop  |  Design*Sponge  |  Heater Bullard  |  This is Glamorous 

diy canvas + saturday morning light

My [not-so] new apartment has tons of wall space and natural light—something the old place had been lacking. And this morning I took advantage of both to create an easy piece of wall art with matching pic for the blog! 

The art was pretty simple to create and cost under $25 in total. I purchased an over-sized canvas from Michael's for under $20, black craft paint and a new package of assorted paintbrushes from the dollar store . The one and only step for this project is to cover the canvas with short brush strokes—which took about 40 minutes. And voila! Cheap, easy and adorable. 

Where did this morning's motivation come from? Well, this week I started a new ecourse with Decor8's Holly Becker, Blogging with Intention and Style. I'm hoping it will give me that extra kick in the butt to continue with my posts and also a little help with my photos.

things i want to frame: Enjoy Your Own Company

Love my alone time.

image: Brinks of Life

eat, drink and be scary

Last night my sister, brother-in-law and I carved a pumpkin. 

I honestly can't remember the last time I had done that, and for my brother-in-law, Kervin, it was his very first time. There's something about the smell of a pumpkin that brings you back to homemade costumes, pillowcases full of candy and childhood parties. I think that's what drew me to these nostalgic-inspired pins on Pinterest. 

images clockwise from top: Craftily Ever After | A Beautiful Mess | Not Martha | Martha Stewart | Whimsey Box Blog | Unknown | Unknown  | Martha Stewart | Mr. P Blog