High-Style, Low-Cost Ideas with Haus Design!

Happy Friday, ya'll! I have another guest stopping by to share some high-style, low-cost decorating ideas with you today!

-----------------

Hi!  I'm Barbara from HausDesign.  I have been living in Munich for the last four years and during that time I have visited many flea markets while traveling around Europe, as well as frequenting many that happen regularly right here in Munich.  I have found the markets to be an excellent source for design pieces, and getting the "look for less".  Check out these examples: 


My most recent find was this old milk crate - compare mine for $14...


<> <> <>

Photo and Styling by Barbara Jordan Dettweiler

...with Pottery Barn's version for $99:


<> <> <>

Pottery Barn

I have loved and admired Kosta Boda's beautiful glass designs for a long time, but not the prices!


<> <> <>

Kosta Boda Atoll Votive - $50

I recently came across this old ash tray at our local flea market for $20 and loved the way it reflects candlelight - no one needs to know it was originally an ash tray. :)


<> <> <>

Photo by Barbara Jordan Dettweiler

Since that picture also includes books, I'll go there next...

I LOVE to buy old books at flea markets anywhere in the world.  The illustrations and binding are so pretty and unique - great for building an interesting vignette.  I bought all three of those for about $15 at another flea market here in Munich a few years ago and have continued to buy them as we travel.  I hope to use them to design a great bookshelf, inspired by this:


<> <> <>

Brooke Gianetti - Velvet and Linen Blog

And one last look for less!  Pottery Barn has these great green vintage bottles right now but I find them really pricey.  They run $99 - $279, depending on the size.

<> <> <>

Pottery Barn

I paid about $15 for the jug below at a flea market.  Mine is quite large so I think it's comparable to the $279 jug from Pottery Barn.  I also find this one extra special because it is an old fermenting jug - the writing on the old label is french and records the ingredients that were added over time.  By the way, there are literally dozens of glass bottles similar to the ones above at our local flea market right now!

<> <> <>

Photo by Barbara Jordan Dettweiler

I hope you enjoyed my flea market "looks for less".  If you're interested, I am available for sourcing from these wonderful flea markets.  You can read more about my flea market finds here, or feel free to just contact me!

Thanks so much, Mary, for having me today!

High Style, Low Cost Ideas with Design Manifest!

Today Naomi from the blog Design Manifest is here to share a cheap and chic lil project with you. I'm a huge fan of Naomi's blog. . . her style is so unique and inspiring! I love reading her posts, there is always something fresh and new that I have never seen before. So you can only imagine how excited I was that she agreed to stop by today!!

-----------------

Hi everyone, I'm so happy to be over here sharing a little makeover. I used to consider myself incredibly un-handy. Drilling, hanging, recovering felt overwhelming and out of my realm. But little by little I've tackled small projects and gained confidence. If I can do this stuff, anyone can!
 
Last year I found these great stools from JC Penney. They were inexpensive and I loved the faux bamboo look, so I scooped up two of them. I knew I could simply screw off the top and spray paint the base. The shape of the cushion seemed easy enough to recover too.

I love stools because they can be used anywhere and are such an easy way to infuse personality into a space. You can go a little bolder because they are small. Plus the look is easy to change out. I opted to give them a bit of oomp by spray painting the bases fire engine red.

And then I recovered the tops in a pretty Balinese fabric my Mom had leftover.

They instantly felt more exotic and custom to me. Whenever I see them, they bring a smile to my face.

8 months later, I've moved and the decor of my new place is heading in a whole different direction. So I'm actually planning to change up the base and fabric on top. In a way it makes me sad to lose this pair, but I can always change it back if I want. Plus I'll always have the pictures!

So Cindy Crawford Stools VS My Stools... who wins in a boxing match?

** These particular stools are no longer available, but I wanted to point out that this could be done with any piece. Just find a stool with an interesting shape, add a bold color and a new fabric that makes you happy and boom amazing new stools for you!

Thanks so much for having me over, Mary! It was fun to share.

xo,
Naomi

-----------------

Did you know that Naomi is lucky enough to work as a father-daughter team with her dad, designing and renovating houses?! She's also pretty talented in the Ikea-hacking department if you ask me! Check this out:

And here's what the finished Ikea Rast cabinets looks like in her home;



I told ya the girl was brilliant! Happy Friday, everyone! :)

 

High Style Low Cost Ideas with The Way We Are!

TGIF! In keeping with the spirits around here, I have another friend stoping by today to share with you some chic and cheap decorating ideas! Leah from The Way We Are is here and I couldn't be more excited! She's honestly one of the nicest people ever, she has a fabulous home and and a gorgeous (growing!) family. If you aren't farmiliar with her blog, go check it out!

-----------------

First of all I am so honored Mary asked me to do this guest post! When she asked me to talk about my absolute favorite thing... decorating on a budget.. I was even more thrilled! I am constantly doing little projects using very little money. Today I wanted to share with you all my latest two makeovers that cost me very little.


The first one is a coffee table that I found on Craigslist that was listed for $15. Whenever I get something off craigslist I always ask for a cheaper price so I ended up getting this table for $10! I decided to spray paint it with Rustoleum's white gloss spray paint and viola a gorgeous coffee table at a very affordable price!

The second project is a rug that I purchased at Ikea. On it's own it's a very plain ho hum rug but with a little masking tape and paint...

Tada! The rug cost $40 and the paint $25. I think it is a very chic rug for the cost of only $65!

I hope I have given you some good motivation and great inspiration to tackle your own inexpensive makeover projects!

Thanks again Mary!

Luvs

-----------------

Thank you so much Leah! Can you believe this girl is 7 months pregnant and still tackling projects like this? I applaud her! Take a peak at a few other rooms in Leah's house that she has worked her DIY magic on;

Can you tell I love her house and all of her creative, colorful, fun ideas?! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Adios!

High Style, Low Cost Centerpiece Idea with Our Fine House

Horay, it's Friday! Another one of my stylish blogger friends has stopped by to share a project with you!

-----------------

Hi Everyone! I’m Jen from Our Fine House where my husband and I blog about our DIY projects and design ideas. I’m so excited to be guest posting at JPM Design. Mary is a favorite blogger of mine and I was honored when she asked if I would be interesting in taking part in her Guest Blogger Series.

Today I’d like to share my Succulent Centerpiece with you. With the warm weather approaching, I know that we will be entertaining outdoors often, so we will need a nice centerpiece on our outdoor table. Since we have a ton of succulents in our backyard, I decided to take some clippings and create something beautiful for our table. I’ll provide step by step instructions, for those of you who have never worked with succulents before. They are surprisingly easy to grow!

When I saw these vases at Ikea, I knew they would be perfect for succulents. At the price of 3/14.99, it was a steal!

First, I placed river stones in the base of the glass. This allows the soil to drain. Succulents are very drought tolerant and don’t like a lot of water. It’s best to only water succulents when their soil is very dry.

Next, I poured the soil. It’s best to use soil that is specifically for cacti and succulents. If you don’t have any handy, you can mix regular potting soil with an equal amount of sand.

When taking succulent clippings, it’s best to use sharp garden clippers. Let the clippings sit out for about a week. This allows the clippings to “scab over”, which will help them root and avoid disease once they are planted. If you’re nervous about working with succulents, you may want to purchase Rooting Hormone. It’s easy to use and will help your clippings take root. It’s not completely necessary, but may give you a boost of confidence, especially if you are worried that you didn’t let your clipping sit out long enough.

I also happened to have some moss handy, so I added that as well. Moss can easily be purchased at any gardening store or you may even be able to gather some yourself.

To add a bit more texture and interest, I nestled a few river rocks in the vase as well.

And there you have it! A beautiful centerpiece for our outdoor table.

-----------------

What an easy, cheap way to create a centerpiece. I am a huge fan of succulents and have tons of them in my yard. They grow like weeds (which is a good thing in their case!)  I may just have to try this out. Julie from Belle Maison created a succulent centerpiece a while back and I have wanted to make something similar, ever since!

High Style, Low Cost Ideas with La Maison Boheme!

Whohoo, it's Friday! And I am sure you know what that means. . . Another fabulous design-enthusiast/blogger/friend of mine has stopped by to share some ideas with you! I'll let her take it from here. . .

-----------------

Hi, I'm Sarah from La Maison Boheme and I'm so excited to be here at JPM! Like many of you out there, I'm always looking for ways to feather my nest without spending a lot of money (or any money at all). I want to share a little corner of my living room with you today. Every thing in the photo below was either found on Craig's List, a re-purposed hand-me-down, purchased at a discount store or a thrift store find that needed a little DIY love.

When I want a new look, I go shopping in my own home. I look at existing pieces that are under-utilized, tucked away in a closet or out of date and try to renew them. For instance, I recently made two throw pillows for my sofa by using two cloth napkins backed with an old green curtain. I really liked the look of the Suzani prints I was seeing in all the magazines, but couldn't afford the hefty price. These napkins were purchased on sale at Cost Plus World Market. I ended up with two pillows for under 7 dollars.

The side table was purchased via Craig's List. All I used was a little wood glue to strengthen the table, a can of old red paint hiding in my shed and a spray can of polyurethane (Miniwax) to seal it all. My total cost was under 20 dollars for the whole she-bang. Now, it's one of my favorite things in the room!

The possibilities are endless. Next time you see a look you love, start at home and go shopping in your own cupboards and drawers. Taking your old belongings in their current incarnation and seeing their potential takes some practice, but can be very rewarding. And if your project turns out to be a big mess - the only thing you've lost is a little time and an old piece of something that you weren't using anyway.

-----------------

Thank you so much for stopping by, Sarah! If you aren't already farmiliar with her blog, it's quite spectacular. It's filled to the brim with bohemian eye candy, interiors and inspiration. In fact, I was so inspired by her suzani napkin pillows, I went out and made one for myself earlier this spring! 

Happy Friday, everyone!

High Style, Low Budget Ideas from Green Street

Today we have Fran from the blog Green Street stopping by to share a recent DIY project with you all! Her blog is full of so much wonderfulness, I can't even begin to describe it! Here's a few peaks at her house; 

-----------------

Thank you Mary for inviting me to do a guest post on your blog!  So excited!!

So, I've been slowly updating my 'office/toy storage room/ guest room'.  You know the 1 room that needs to serve 100 different functions.  Anyway, I've been incorporating colors of green, coral, and some yellow and turquoise.  Basically, taking the lead from the infamous Schumacher's 'Chiang Mai' fabric in aquamarine. 

I had an 'A-ha' moment the other day when I decided to incorporate a contrasting color as most of my colors sit on one side of the color wheel.  So, I was browsing my favorite images and came across this good 'ol standby and thought, "That's it" - I'll dye my lampshade.

via

I've been wanting to do this project for sometime, see here.  Anyway, I had some reservations as I've dyed curtains before, but never a lampshade.  I went out and bought some trusty old "Rit" in navy blue.

Here is a picture of the lampshade before its transformation.

Exciting, huh?  Okay, and here it is after its dye job!

And, again.

I like how it came out.  Although, personally, if I were to do it again, I probably would want it darker.  

{How to dye your lampshade}:

1) Heat up enough water to fill 1/3 of your kitchen sink or plastic (20 gallon) tub (which is what I used).

2) Add dye to water.  I added about about 3/4 quarters of the bottle.  

3) Add lampshade and agitate constantly (which I'm good at ;)).  I just kept rotating it in a circular motion.  I think this is important to ensure even distribution of color.  

4) When you've reached the color you want, take it out and let it dry.  My shade was in there for 40 minutes.  The longer your shade is in the dyed water, the darker it'll become.

And, that's it!!  Hope you enjoyed this mini transformation.  Thanks, Mary for having me!! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!