DIY // Gold Side Table

One of my new year goals is living more in the moment, but I have to admit, I'm already dreaming of Spring.  I'm tired of the dreary rain and cold weather we are having here in Houston.  Bring on the sunshine!  On Honey We're Healthy, I'm already dreaming of swimsuit season!  I added a dose of pretty to my master bedroom recently and it made the room (and me:) feel a little brighter. 

I had a small, black console table from Overstock from my old office that I spray painted gold.  The shiny metallic took it from boring to bling in an instant.  When shopping for things like furniture, picture frames, vases, etc., always keep in mind that, if the shape is right but the color is wrong, you may be able to spray paint it to make it right for your space. 

After I spray painted three light coats of Rust-Oleum bright coat metallic finish gold paint, I styled it with some books, a gorgeous vase of pink tulips from the grocery store, and one of my favorite pictures of my little guy.  (He's just two months old in that picture!)  

I was surprised to find Penguin Classics fabric covered books at Homegoods while I was doing Christmas shopping.   They were my Christmas gift to me this year!

Bloom, by Kelle Hampton is a great book (I read it in two days) and I love her blog.  Do you read it? 

Grocery store tulips are perfect for welcoming Spring!  Aren't they cheerful?

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Also, you can head over and visit Emily A. Clark to see my, and other bloggers, answers to her "5 Questions I've Always Wanted to Ask Other Bloggers."

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And THANK YOU House Beautiful for sharing my fabric lined bookshelf!  What an unexpected surprise and honor. 

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DIY (Fashion Inspiration Board)

When it comes to fashion and outfit inspiration, I need all the help I can get.  If it were up to me, in the fall/winter, I'd probably wear the same jeans and comfy/casual neutral shirt with boots (maybe adding a scarf), and in the summer, you'd see me in shorts, a tank top and flip flops.  I'm not too trendy, but I like to add a little bit of jewelry (stacks of bracelets look so cool but drive me crazy on my arm- when I'm at work, I always end up taking them off- so hard to type with!). My go-to style looks something like this:

via

I've got super stylish friends (Cassie, Courtney, Michaela, Natalie, Chassity, and Andee to name a few) that are great at pulling together different cute, hip outfits, but it doesn't come as easy for me- I lean towards neutrals (black, tan, and white) and tend to wear the same thing repeatedly.  But, I like to step outside my comfort zone and dress colorfully or wear prints sometimes too.



(p.s.  My favorite source for tanks is Mossimo Target.  They are great for layering and come in every color.  I love Express shorts in the summer, Hudson jeans, and Express casual three-quarter lightweight tees).

My "Fashion * Beauty * Hair" board on Pinterest is a great source of clothing inspiration, but I wanted some inspiration that was tangible and visible at-a-glance right inside my closet.  I figured this will help me when I'm choosing outfits in the future.



I had the perfect narrow wall adjacent to the mirror in my closet for the inspiration board.

I recycled the Target cork boards that were previously in our mudroom and covered them with fabric (leftover from my book project) to make them prettier.  They were $5 for a pack of 4 and I doubled them for this project to make them thicker.



Cut the fabric about two inches larger than the cork board and use spray adhesive to adhere the fabric to the board.

I used Command strips to hang the boards on the wall.

I just started going through my InStyle and People Style Watch subscriptions for some images to keep me inspired.

And then I found this encouraging "Hey Gorgeous."  Who doesn't want to hear that while they're getting ready in the morning?!  I especially like what it said below, "why not show yourself some love and stop fixating on your perceived figure flaws."  Yes, we can all do that. 

And thank you for all of your kind comments on Jenna's weight loss story on Honey We're Healthy.  I know she appreciated it so very much!

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Organizing the Little Things

At my house, it drives me crazy when one type of thing is scattered throughout the house.  I have to collect everything and have it in one place.  It's just a weird, annoying habit I have.  Zip lock bags (that come in all sizes) are great for corralling small things together.  But, I had a bunch of things in zip lock bags that I knew could be better organized.

Even though having things contained in bags is better than having things all over in different drawers or cabinets, it's not always the best practical solution.  Every time I needed to hang a picture or was looking for a hook or outlet cover, I had to dig through the bags and I couldn't easily tell what I had.  I found a pair of small acrylic storage boxes at The Container Store for $14.99 that would be perfect for these little items.  

Removing the packaging helped me fit everything into the little drawers.  

I like that the container is clear so you can see exactly what's inside, but that didn't stop me from making labels.  I printed labels in my labeler and affixed them to colorful Martha Stewart tags.  You can find those at Staples.  She has a beautiful collection of office accessories. 

Even though the drawers are clear, having the pretty labels makes me smile. 

The zip lock bags of stuff were previously in my pantry, but these boxes fit perfectly in the mudroom cabinet shelf. 

So much better!

How do you keep your little things organized? 

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Media Cabinet Organization

Continuing with my January organizing theme, I've been digging deep into those pockets in my house that have been neglected and in dire need of some organizational attention.  We are fortunate to have a large built-in media cabinet in the living room with lots of storage.  It's got four deep drawers and four cabinets with double shelves.   It looks so nice from the outside . . .

But inside was a complete mess!  

I'm so glad that I finally got in there and cleaned it out!  I ended up with an empty drawer and cabinet when I was finished!

I have no idea about this video game business but at least it's organized now. 

We don't really watch DVD's either, but now I know what we have.  

Having a dedicated drawer for diapers, wipes, and diaper cream has been awesome- so handy!

I love having all the batteries and light bulbs in one place.  We could use more spare light bulbs, but at least we have room for them.  I also like to light candles in the evening, so the tea lights are ready to go.  

The batteries are stored by size in an extra silverware divider that I wasn't using.  It's a great solution for being able to see what batteries we have at a glance.  With kids' toys, we always need batteries.

I'm most excited about making room for James' crayons, coloring books, and play dough.  Then, we parked his "special" cars on the bottom shelf.  

I printed "James' Art Tray" from my computer and laminated it, then stuck it to the tray with double-sided tape.

The crayon and marker holder is just a plastic dollar-store type container.  I went through and got rid of all the dried out markers and markers missing their caps.  It's nice to be able to pull the whole thing out if he wants to color and then put it away behind closed doors. 

I used to keep James' medicine in one of the drawers for convenience, and I'm glad now to have moved it up to the medicine cabinet where there is no chance he can get into it.  

Are y'all still in the organizing/cleaning out spirit?  

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Also, on my fitness blog, Honey We're Healthy, I'm proud to be featuring my friend Jenna of Small Fry Blog and her amazing weight loss story.  I'd love for you to visit and read about how she adopted a healthy lifestyle and transformed to a size 4 after having two kids.  Very inspirational and motivating!  Thank you Jenna for letting me share your story!

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Updating Your Home Using What You've Got

Especially at the start of a new year, when one of my goals is to save money, I try to make updates in my home that don't cost much, if anything.  Are you doing the same thing at your place right now?  One way to change up a space is to "shop your house" and move things around.  Sometimes, once we put furniture, rugs, framed photos, etc. in a certain spot in our home, we think they have to live there forever.  Well, part of the fun is mixing things up and just seeing how they look in different places.  It might not work, but I like to try it just to see.  Also, I need to see things in place to really tell how I feel about it, as opposed to some people who can visualize more in their heads.



The evolution of our sitting room is a prime example of changing things up.  It's not my dream for the space, but I'm trying to work with what I have.  That big leather chair/ottoman and I go way back to my single days!

A while ago, I moved that chair/ottoman to the living room to provide more seating and to hide one of the toy boxes.  So, the sitting room sat rather empty for some time.

At Christmas, we put our tree in the curve of the staircase, so we had to move the Target settee somewhere, and it temporarily went to the sitting room.

The scale is off, but it was only temporary.  After the Christmas tree came down and I wanted to give my son more play room in the living room, the chair went back upstairs.

But this time, I also added our Beni Ourian rug from Pottery Barn that was previously in the entryway.

So now, the sitting room looks like this.  (The side table was moved upstairs from the living room too).

A woven basket adds another layer of texture and conveniently holds magazines or an extra blanket or pillow.  I still really like the mini wooden crate (on wheels) that I got at Joss & Main to hold James' books.  

And fresh flowers always help breathe new life into a room.  These are from Whole Foods. :)

So, what are you moving around in your house these days?

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