My DIY project: Affordable Decorations For Spring

I sometimes come across beautiful crafts on Pinterest and blogs, and I immediately fall in love with them and want to make them. Then I start actually reading the instructions... Look, I am not extremely gifted in the crafts department, so for me to actually attempt a craft project I need it to be easy and straightforward, yet still useful and pretty. Is that too much to ask?

Turns out no, it's not. I started "My DIY Project" to find just that: easy, simple projects that are great and look like they were a lot more difficult to make. My very first project is to attempt some cute decorations to welcome spring (not that we get any spring whatsoever where I live, but a girl can dream!). I did three mini-projects, perfect to celebrate the arrival of the colorful season. I focused on pink and gold, because I love those colors and go perfectly for the time of year. More importantly, they were incredibly easy and dirt cheap.

The supplies I used were:
- Several canvases in different sizes
- Acrylic paint in your favorite colors (I chose iridescent ones, because I wanted lots of shimmer!)
- Ribbon
- Used pots/ bottles/ mason jars.
- Circle sponge
- Wrapping paper

1. A little wall art
I am so useless at art, but I gave it a shot and was very proud of having left my comfort zone for this. Even if it didn't turn out amazing and stunning, it is mine and I actually quite like the imperfect look. For the first canvas, I was inspired by this statement wall. I think it is gorgeous and creative, so I decided to incorporate it onto my little canvas with one of my favorite sentences: "Trust The Universe". This took all of 15 minutes to make, plus drying time. Simple as that.

super chipped nails  (I know, I know!)
You can always go over with some white paint and correct little mistakes!

Then I took the larger canvas, and painted the whole surface with iridescent pink acrylic paint. Then all I did was cut out some stripes of gold ribbon and glue them, leaving about 1/2 inch between each of them to create the pink/gold stripes. Again, this took about 15 minutes.

The medium canvas I gave to my husband to decorate, and he opted for some chinese characters in gold and black, and some iridescent navy polka dots which he achieved with the circle sponge.

2. Pencil Holders
I have a *small* obsession with beauty/bath/body products. There, I said it. So I have a collection of used pots and containers, and this was the perfect opportunity to upcycle them. I simply bought three sheets of the most gorgeous wrapping paper I found at the store, and wrapped some of the pots with a different design. It was as easy as that. They now look a lot cuter and very useful to store all those bits and pieces we have lying around in the house.

Note: make sure your containers are clean. If you remove the tags (I did), wipe the container with some rubbing alcohol to completely remove all the sticky residue left.

On one of the pots, my husband drew a little tribal rose which I then painted pink, and also painted the rim gold.

And for the polka-dot one,  I simply used the circle sponge to dab some polka dots in different colors. Then I went over the rim of the pot with gold acrylic paint to give it a more "finished" look. It is a very simple pot, but the little pops of color make it perfect for spring and for planting some seeds or a cute little flower inside. This took all five minutes to make!

3. I then chose to use the big mason jar as a vase to give it an even more spring-y feel. I bought some cute fake flowers and put them in there, and don't they look pretty? Now they sit in my room.

I am a proud little bee now with my cute new spring decorations, imperfections and all!
Please let me know if you are going to try any of these :)

Stationery Luuuuve

Before I write anything, I just want to put a disclaimer out there, to say that I am not associated in any way with the brand mentioned, I just became obsessed with their products when I first headed over to their website. It was love at first sight.

Bills aren't going to pay themselves, so having a job is (for most people anyway) a necessary, important part of life, if only because of the life lessons and relationships that come with it. However, any job can easily become boring and spiral into a never-ending routine, if you don't make it  a fun and enjoyable experience.

First, you must know that I am completely obsessed with stationery and cute office supplies. Ever since I first started consciously knowing what it was, I would marvel at different-colored notebooks, sparkly pens and markers, bright erasers and rulers, and mountains of stickers. It is an obsession that instead of ending, has grown with time and now I am the proud owner of about a hundred different notepads and notebooks that I use for anything and everything, and I have also been known to use my toddler's colored pencils more than him...  (*looks around in shame*)

When I first heard of Poppin through one of my favorite blogs, http://www.bubbyandbean.com/, I had to check it out. Next thing I know, I had spent three hours browsing their website and our dinner had burned (kind of...). I immediately decided which items I wanted for my workplace, just to add a little more life to it. So here are all my favorites:

Some goodies for the professional gal...

Pink iCushion

Lime Green Clipboard

Pink Mouse Pad

Pink Pebble Eraser

And of course there's a notebook in this list...

Racecar One Subject Notebook

I left the best for the end: A color-changing lamp in the shape of a teardrop! How absolutely perfect is this!? It is cute, bright and cheerful. Whenever you are having a particularly hard day at work, I'm sure looking over at this pretty lamp will be enough to make you forget your troubles, at least for a few minutes. Just maybe don't place directly in front of you, as it can get a little distracting...

Color Changing Teardrop Light

Aren't all these supplies absolutely adorable? How much easier would it be to get out of bed on a cold monday morning when you know these are all sitting neatly on your desk, waiting for you to arrive and begging to be used?

If you are anything like me, checking out their website can be dangerous... it will make you waste a good amount of hours, but I know you won't resist the urge, so I'll let you go now. Enjoy the rest of your day taking mental notes for your next stationery haul!