I'm Blue da ba de ba da doo...

Do you remember that song from Eiffel 65? In case you're looking for something to get stuck in your head for EVER:

Hi guys, 

Thanks for bearing with me the other day. Perhaps I was taking out my "blue" mood is some subconcious freudian way this weekend, because someone *rasies hand* went a little nuts with the color blue in the master bedroom. Or should I call it the master BLUE room. No? Ok. Well- see what I mean:

 Here's a close-up of those curtains.

 I have been eyeing this fabric for EVAH and this weekend I stumbled upon it at my favorite discount fabric store, Boca Bargoons Fabric Outlet, on 20th street in Boca Raton. Where it was $21 a yard after their 40% off everything sale that they always seem to have going on. Sooo...  This is a splurge for me, considering that curtains generally require 6+ yards, but in my mind, sooo worth it. Our room was threatening to win the world cup in beige-ness.

Here's a peek before:

ew. 

Here's after I made my $10 DIY Headboard

 Ah, much better. Now to add some pops of color! 

I'm a sucker for indigo. I'm an indigo girl.

I made those drapes, BTW. With my buddy, Mr. Sewing Machine. You can see that only one has the blackout lining done because I am lazy, and that first one was a BIIIITCH. 

Also that bedskirt is probably one of the more genius thing's I've ever done. I was going to actually MAKE a full on bedskirt with like, measuring and adhesion and stuff,  so I tucked my fabric in and around the box spring bedskirt-style to see how I liked it, and guess what happened? It stayed there. New home. New bedskirt, no sewing. Bam! Which is just as well since I'm not totally sold on the fabric. Too matchy-matchy? 

Dirty secret: Only my side and the foot of my Cal-king size bed has a skirt, since I folded my 4 yd piece in half.  Zach's side is nekkid. Shh!!! I don't think he's noticed yet.

Anyhoo- temporary/easy-to-take with me and not getting locked into anything is the name of the game these days. Which is why I decided to make my purty fabric into drapes instead of locking into a piece of upholstery.

I even kept an extra 4 inches at the bottom of each curtain and just basted the hem so that if we go somewhere that needs longer drapes, I can just let out the seam! 

In any case I'm glad that we are no longer in the running for the "Bedroom that looks most like the inside of a milk carton contest".

Did I mention I like indigo?

$10 DIY Headboard

As renters, our bedroom was kinda bland. Like, embarrassingly bland. Here it is before: 

I've made a headboard for our bed before when we were living in San Francisco, but when it was time to move, our Cal King size DIY headboard was just too monstrous to move cross-country. 

I wanted to do something that would have a lot of impact for not a lot of cash, so I got a bit creative. I had some sturdy poster board from the dollar store lying around, as well as some extra trim, batting and burlap. So I taped my poster board together: 

(note- I would not use electrical tape next time since it shows through the thin burlap, just a little)

Then traced my design and cut it out with a boxcutter:

And used the cut out portion as a template for the other side, so that they were even: 

Then using spray adhesive. I patched together some batting scraps I had left over from previous projects: 

This is where it starts to look a little like Frankenstein. 

I then laid the poster board on top of the burlap and upholstered it using a regular staple gun. I folded the burlap back on itself before stapling so it had a little something to hold on to. 

Then, I secured the back together even more using some twine, hot glue and staples to create a zig zag pattern that secured all the boards together even more. 

Now, to hang it- I tried using picture hangers on some parts of the twine... not good. 

Soooo I nailed it to the wall. Haha. Well, its about as much damage as a picture hanger, and it stays flush! 

Here's the cost breakdown: 

Poster board $1 ea x 3 = $3

Burlap $2/yd x 2.5 = $5

Trim $1/yd x 2 = $2

= $10! 

Not bad! For less than a cocktail we gave our bedroom a big facelift! 

Also, want to know a secret? That trim isn't glued on- nope! I just pinned it on with straight pins. So if I want to throw out the headboard when we move, or use the trim for another project, it just comes straight off!

This is a great idea for renters, who don't want to deal with bolting a huge piece of plywood to the wall. It's light enough that a nail on each side holds her up, and cheap enough that if you don't want to carry it on to your next place, your guilt factor for just throwing it out is pretty low. 

This post linked to:
Savvy Southern Style
A Beach Cottage: Good Life Wednesday 
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
A Stroll Thru Life
Flaunt it Friday @ Chic on a Shoestring Decorating
Frugal Friday @ The Shabby Nest

xoxo,