DIY Beautify - Creating Beauty at Home

Do you enjoy decorating your  mantel? A mantel is one of my favorite areas to decorate and I especially love dressing my mantel for seasonal holidays. It's just a nice little perch and the first thing you see when you walk into our home. I don't think I've ever decorated my mantel for the Fourth of July, but I was inspired by a bandana bunting I spotted in Country Living magazine, and the mantel kind of evolved from there.

Here's a fabulous lineup of patriotic projects that you can whip up, just in time for the Fourth. Can you believe the Fourth of July is just around the corner? I hope you're having a great summer. We are HOT here in middle TN, and have been getting a lot of rain - which is good and bad. Good because it means I can be lazy when it comes to watering my flower pots outside; bad because it's not great pool weather and it wreaks havoc with my allergies! Anywhoo, I hope you've got some fun plans lined up to celebrate July 4th! I decided to include all my patriotic projects in one place so if you've got a hankering for a red, white and blue project...you've come to the right spot.

You've all heard the saying, 'You reap what you sow,' and even though I'm using it out of context...it proved true in this instance. I'm talking about a lazy coffee table transformation about 6 months ago where I neglected to finish it with a top coat, leading to this...

If you've read DIY beautify for any time, you'll know that I love bunting. Whether you call them bunting or banners or swags, I've made them from  doilies ,  dictionary pages ,  burlap , even  drop cloth . So when I saw the  denim pocket banner from Pen N' Paper Flowers, I was inspired to make my own, modifying the method slightly.

This post is sponsored by the Tulip One-Step Tie-Dye Kit and Blueprint Social. All opinions on tie dye and summer and candy and tweenagers are entirely my own! My 10-year old daughter and I could almost be twinsies (that darn age thing!). We not only look alike...we both love the beach, the color aqua, summer, movies, candy AND we both enjoy making stuff! Bonding together over a fun craft is one of our favorite things, and we recently celebrated the arrival of summer with a  Tie Dye project . I'm going to share a fun and easy Swirl Tie Dye Tee technique with you today! 

Father's Day is just around the corner. Do you know what you're getting for your dad...or your children's dad? Might I be so bold as to suggest an easy, yet meaningful gift? A heartfelt printable that you can pop into a frame and dad can display on his desk is something that never goes out of style. I have created several different printables for you to choose from. They are free (for personal use only ) and each is a different style, hopefully one will suit Your dad!

A pile of old wood is a lot like families... ...weathered ... rough in spots and full of splinters ...many are discarded and untended BUT full of potential! Just like a family, with a little love and attention, an old weathered piece of wood can turn into something beautiful! I became the happy owner of a big 'ole pile of junk wood last fall. A lot of it was old fence boards, but there was also a bunch of pallet wood which became a sign.

Happy first day of June! Can you even believe that summer is approaching so quickly? Today I'm sharing a super quick and easy craft. It's patriotic in nature, but could easily be adapted for any occasion or holiday. I created this Patriotic printable and easy jar wraps for Memorial Day, and they'll be put to use again for the Fourth of July. This craft takes literally minutes to make, but adds decorative flair to your picnic table, centerpiece or anywhere you'd like a little Patriotic flavor!