A Gallery Wall for Renters

Check out any Pinterest home board and chances are, a gallery wall photo (or 5) will be pinned to it. I love a good gallery wall. I think it's a great way to tell your story and showcase your taste through personal photos, prints and art. But, if you don't own your home (like me), these can be tough to execute as it requires drilling or nailing multiple holes in your wall.

I bring you: the gallery wall for renters. While it still requires some drilling - putting the shelf into the wall - it has a lot less holes than if you were to hang each photo individually. Plus, I love that I can rearrange the order of these photos or the images within them to give my room a whole new look and feel whenever I want.

All you need is a collection of frames, a picture ledge (I used the IKEA Ribba, which I've talked about before here), and a series of prints and pictures. Many of the images on my gallery wall feature some of my travel photos that I've had printed off using an online printing service or at the local convenience store. 

Picture frames can get expensive fast, so whenever I see a frame that I like, I purchase it to avoid having to buy 10-20 frames at once to create a gallery wall. I've gathered the frames pictured below over the past couple of years from places like IKEA, Home Goods, Marshalls or TJ Maxx. I have a habit of picking up cheap frames and good candles wherever I go because I know in my house they will always get put to use!

Shelves, Lady Prints, Gold Frames: Ikea// Comparison is the thief of Joy: Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co.// Photos from Barcelona, Berlin, DC

Trend Spotlight: Metallics

Trend Spotlight: Metallics by julie-walsh featuring metal home decor

Updating your home decor can get expensive fast, but switching it up from season to season doesn't have to be. I love changing out home accents and rearranging my items to get a new look when I'm feeling a refresh. One of my favorite home decor fixes: metallics. I treat them like neutrals and love the luxe feel they add to any space. From switching out your hardware and light bulbs to adding a planter and a pillow, above are five ways you can spruce up your home with metallics for under $30. 

IKEA RIBBA REWORK

I hate bare walls in the home, but adding artwork can quickly become an expensive endeavour. Whether you are buying a custom piece or looking to have an inexpensive print framed, it can be challenging to decorate on a budget. One of my favorite ways to add character to a home is by featuring travel photos throughout the house.

The IKEA RIBBA frame series is perfect for my personal taste: simple, black frames with white matting included at a very reasonable price. One problem: like most IKEA items, they come in "unique" mat sizes that tend to only fit their prints. The solution: rework the frame by adding an additional mat.

Read below for 3 steps to reworking an IKEA RIBBA frame to make it look like custom piece.

Step 1: I have a standard 8x10 photo of Chicago that I took and edited on my iPhone using the Camera+ app, and had printed using a photo service, but you could also have it printed at a local convenience store. I took the frame measurements to a local framing store and selected my mat. If you are looking to add a pop of color in your house, the accent mat is a great way to do it. I stuck with a basic gray that matched the color of the photo.

Step 2: measure and line up the photo with the mats. I kept costs down with this piece by having the photo "floating." What this means is that you just lay the photo on top and tape it down, instead of having the mat cut to fit. If you are not new to framing, some shops will actually allow you to cut your own mat, which can also help keep costs down. But you also have the option to have them cut the additional mat to make the piece truly more custom. 

Step 3: Voila! I eliminated the awkward space from the photo by adding the mat and created a beautiful picture that looks custom to the space for less than $26.

Totals:

$2.99 print

$9.99 frame

$15.99 mat

Holiday Hostess Gift Guide

Holiday Hostess Gift Guide by julie-walsh featuring Fresh beauty products

With holiday season in full swing our social calendars are quickly filling up with brunches, cocktail hours and parties. I've compiled a round up of my favorite holiday hostess gifts for every event and friend - all for under $25. Chic gift giving at a reasonable price - what could be better than that? 

Merry, merry!

XO

Reverse IKEA Hack

Happy Wednesday, all! This past weekend my sister and I took on some major DIY/home reno projects at her place. One of our favorite final pieces was this chest of drawers below. The piece was a gorgeous oak with minimal finish, but didn't fit the rest of the furniture in the room, which was all IKEA in the brown black color.  So, with a can of paint and some tools we took the following steps below to make it match. To take on this project you'll need the following materials:

- Plastic paint tarp
- Paint Trays, brushes, and and old t-shirts
- Putty knife
- Strypeeze paint remover
- Paint thinner
- Medium grit sand paper (100-220) and hand scrubber
- Quart of interior paint and primer (we used Benjamin Moore interior paint and primer in Taupe)

Step 1: We prepped our outside space with a paint tarp, and removed the drawers from the base and began the process to strip it from its current finish. We placed some of the Strypeeze in the pant tray and brushed it on the drawers and base, letting it set for 15-20 minutes. Note: I worked all weekend in my Kate Spade Keds. Who said Kate Spade can't go with home renovations? :)

Step 2: After the time was up we took a putty knife to begin peeling away the current finish. Be sure to press very lightly with the putty knife as to not damage the wood. After the finish had been removed we began hand sanding with squares of 100 grit sandpaper. This is the most laborious part of the process and the most critical step. The key to making sure that the refinished piece looks nice is making sure all of the old finish gets removed.

Step 3: After sanding is complete take your hand scrubber and can of paint thinner and apply it to all the sanded areas. I just pour a bit on the wood and used the hand scrubber to buff it out. Once the wood has been buffed take one of your old t-shirts and wipe off any remaining debris left from sanding and wipe down. Let dry completely before beginning the painting process.

Step 4: Next is the fun part - time to paint! For this specific project I choose paint over wood stain. Wood stain can be tricky to work with and you really have to sand down the piece to ensure the stain sticks. Since I am still a novice at these projects, I did not think I was ready to to take on the wood stain. For this project the goal was to have the furniture match the color of existing IKEA furniture in the room. We chose Benjamin Moore's interior paint and primer in Taupe. Picking a paint with a build in primer also helped eliminate a step.

Step 5:  To begin the painting process I poured some paint into a tray and took an old t-shirt (the softer, the better) and dipped it in the paint to apply the coat. The lighter and less paint you use the better. The goal is to really build up to the color you desire by applying light layers and letting them dry in between coats before applying another.

To finish the piece I took an angled paint brush and and some artist paint brushes to touch up the small crevices, and voila! Piece complete. Wait until piece is completely dry before reassembling the furniture. 

And there you have it, a 5 step process for refinishing a piece of wood furniture. Questions? Ask away in the comments below!

Neon Wares

Neon Wares by julie-walsh featuring DwellStudio