REAL easy, REAL inexpensive decorating idea

This is one of those ideas that you can truly use all year, for so many different reasons. We all have mirrors around our homes and we all love how much words have made there way into some of the most popular home decor items.

The use of glass markers allows us to utilize items we already have and incorporate our own words into our decor for an extremely low amount of money.

This glass marker is one of the best I have tried and is available at Michael's for just a few dollars. Use it on mirrors or windows to decorate your home for Christmas, New Year's, Birthday's or just for words of inspiration.

Here are a couple of examples, enjoy and be creative... The dictionary is the limit.

Outside re-DESIGN with draped burlap

Once again, the challenge I faced inside, of so many homes in so few years, has proved true for the outside. Reinventing my existing decorations to make the biggest statement with the smallest budget made way for some new creative resources. The biggest one and also one of everyone's favorites this year-burlap.

I bought the landscape roll of burlap from Lowe's. I priced it out for my friend's wedding and this is the most bang for your buck- $9.99 for a 24 foot roll. I would have loved to keep the original width, but with so much porch to cover I saved $ by cutting the width of the material in half and then draped it along the rail.

My other REAL budget idea was taking an old, stained holiday tablecloth and cutting it into pieces to drape over my existing chair cushions and pillows. Changing your pillows and patterned, year-round, cushions into holiday accents really competes a holiday transformation, but the cost of buying new just for the holidays can quickly add up.

More DIY holiday DESIGNs

I was busy, busy, last night creating a few more fun, easy and very reasonably priced holiday gifts/decor... Take a look at these fun ideas

Holiday mantel #2 complete

Well the second mantel is officially complete. In contrast the neutral tones of the living room, the dining room is full of sparkle and color.

I began collecting vintage Christmas ornaments while still in high school and over the years I have developed a rather large collection. The problem is, with two young children, a dog and a husband, the idea of them crashing off the tree to an explosive finale of a thousand pieces on the floor is unbearable! Therefore, I have found that the best solution is to display these colorful gems in glass jars. I complimented their sparkle by hanging large foil stars (from the Dollar Tree). T

The Christmas cards have arrived!!

With all of the great websites out there for easy upload, pre-formatted, holiday cards; I often wonder why I still insist on DESIGN-ing my own. Again, it is a tradition that mother started years ago when we were young kids and colored paper and photocopies were as glamorous as custom cards came.

I owe a lot of my inspiration and creative energy to my mother. Along with the self-inflicted, yet highly rewarding torture that goes along with keeping traditions REAL and not "fully" store bought.

What are some of the traditions that you still carry-on from your childhood?

More DESIGN-ing for the holidays

The holiday decorating continues to the foyer... Since we have spent the past four Christmases in four different homes, the task of decorating has been a much greater process this year. First, there is the challenge of not knowing where things should go and having to repurpose or rethink their past use for a new location. Next, we have the issue of time. As we removed bin after bin and box after box out of the shed my husband could only say, "another one?". So many bins full of items that we have accumulated over time (why can we not seem to throw away even one ornament?! Old, broken and reflecting the taste of years that we are glad have passed and yet we keep it). With so many different locations over the years, what were once clean, organized, bins, have become tangled piles of chaos. So not only am I decorating and re-DESIGN-ing, but purging as well.

With a new home we would love a new selection of holiday decor, but with REAL budgets, we are forced to reinvent and recreate... We must re-DESIGN our REAL-ity.

Garage Sales are a great REAL budget resources for your DESIGNs

I have been going to garage sales with my mother, since I was a young child. And even today that tortuous, early morning Saturday (I am not and never have been a morning person) is well worth the possible great find.

Growing up in Upstate NY great vintage items at extremely discounted prices were often easy to come by. Here in the South our sales tend to be dominated by clothes and kid's toys, but if you look closely and don't become discouraged by the endless Lee jeans and bald Dora dolls, you just might find some great items for your home.

This morning the kids and I woke up early, packed a bag of snacks and headed out to the sales. They have actually become great sign scouts and almost seem to look forward to the search as much ad their mother. Here are a few pictures of our finds. The old drafting chair I got for $5.00, the metal sculpture piece was a splurge at $10.00 but it makes such a great statement either inside or out!

Garage sales are a great resource for DESIGN-ing your home on a great budget. Just keep an open mind and allow yourself to see beyond the piles of "trash" to find your treasure!