When you were a teenager did you used to cover your walls with pictures from magazines?  I did.  In junior high I used to cut out black and white Calvin Klein ads and hang them up on my walls.  I got the idea for my older, cooler cousins Jackie and Christine.  On the weekend, I decided to channel my 14 year old self and cut out pictures from magazine, Uppercase.

Unlike my 14 year old self, my 28 year old self feels that frames are an absolute must.  We used these old dark IKEA frames that had been stashed in the basement for the past two years.  I think they need to be painted white but for now they are OK.

Talk about an affordable way to spruce up your walls!   It was hard to cut up my Uppercase magazines but I feel so happy every day I look at the pictures hanging above my bed.  Totally worth the sacrifice!

These days I feel like everyone I know has a new baby, is pregnant or is trying to get pregnant.  Please note that Eric and I do not fall into any of these categories.  We are quite happy to be the fun aunt and uncle for now!  So what does this baby boom mean for me?  I am in gift making over drive and have been working on these adorable double sided flannel blankets.

This tutorial comes in two parts.  Part one is all about sewing the blanket.  Part two will cover finishing  the blanket off with a lovely crochet edge.

To complete part one of this project you will need:

• 1 1/4 yards of flannel (I choose a super cute woodlands print)
• 1 1/4 yards of corresponding flannel (I choose a hot pink chevron)
• An iron and ironing board
• A sewing machine and basic sewing supplies including scissors, matching thread and a seam ripper (I always make lots of mistakes)

2. Lay your fabric out on the floor, right sides together

3. Cut around the edges of your fabrics, to trim and square the two pieces .  When you are done, you will have two pieces of fabric that are the exact same size.  Pin around the edges of the blanket leaving one six inch gap in the middle of one side of the blanket. To mark the 6 inch gap I used two red straight pins.  You will use this six inch hole to pull the blanket right side out.

4. Now it’s time to start sewing your blanket!  Start sewing the square at one red pin and end at the other.  I used a a 1/8 inch seam allowance on my blanket.

This means you are sewing a square but leaving a six inch hole at the top of the blanket. As mentioned above, you need this hole so don’t close it up!

Pull the blanket right side out through the 6 inch hole.  WHen you complete this step, the right sides of the fabric should be facing out.

Iron the blanket and flatten out your seams.  I told you sewing is really about ironing.

Next week, we will close up that hole and add the crochet edge.  Until then, admire your super soft flannel baby blanket!

It seems everywhere you look, people are using maps to decorate their houses.  Today’s tutorial shows you how you can incorporate this trend into your decor without spending a whole lot of cash.

To complete this project you will need:

• a pencil
• a good eraser
• a map
• tracing paper
• masking tape
• thick white paper

Take your tracing paper and determine the size of your map.  Word of warning: This project takes patients so start small.  I used the mat of a small square IKEA frame to determine the size of my map.

Cut out your piece of tracing paper and tape it down to the map you will be using.  I love London and choose to trace the neighborhood I lived in from 2001 to 2003.

Begin tracing the outline of your map.

Once you are done outlining the map, tape the sheet of taring paper down to a piece of solid white paper.  I used a card stock.  With some patients you will end up with something that looks like this.  Touch the image up with an eraser and put it in a frame.  Voila!  Affordable map art made by you!

If you frequent Big Box Detox you will know that I am always looking for affordable art options.  When I found this super thin painter’s tape in our basement (left by the previous owner) I thought it would be perfect for a DIY art project and the grid painting was born!

To complete this project here is what you need…

To start, tape off your blank canvas in a grid.

Next step: tape the other directions

Once your canvas is taped up it is time to paint!  Paint your squares and remove the tape.

Before you know it you have easy and affordable art for your walls!

So happy with how it turned out! Still deciding on where to put it in my house!

Last week I found a DIY from Martha Stewart with on making oversized paper pompoms. Martha sells kits to make these pompoms.  I am telling you, these are so easy that you don’t need a kit.  Being too cheap to buy the kit, I made these pompoms on my own for a brunch I hosted last Sunday.

Below you will find instructions that are a bit more detailed than Martha’s.  DO nto buy the kit, you can probably make these with stuff you have lying around the house.

Step One: Stack 12 pieces of tissue paper overtop of one another.  I alternated using three separate shades of blue.  Once the sheets are in place, fold the stack like a fan or accordeon.

Step Two: Cut a piece of yarn and tie it around the center of your folded tissue.  I used yarn because I had it around the house.  Other people have used wire or pipe cleaners for this step. You will end up with a massive tissue bow.

Step Three: Take your scissors and cut the tissue paper edges round. Repeat on both ends of the paper.

 Step Four:  Starting at the center, unfold the tissue sheets apart one piece at a time.

Keep going….

and going…

Stop when you are six sheets in (or half way), flip the pompom over and start opening the paper from the bottom side.

Keep opening the sheets till you have a tissue ball!  Just a quick note: Make sure you hang these ASAP.  If you leave the pompom sitting for too long the weight of the tissue paper will crush the pompom.

There you have it!  Oversized paper pompoms!!  I love how they look with my Feist poster and chalk wall.

What do you think?  Can I get away with leaving them up until we get a proper light over our dining room table?

This blanket is so beautiful.  It is soft warm and completely luxurious.  In addition to being luxurious, it is really easy and requires little time and minimum concentration.

The pattern is super easy. I used size 35 needles with 6 skeins of Twinkle Hand Knits Soft Chunky.  I used three skeins of Pink Champagne and three skeins of French Grey.

• Cast on till the blanket is the width you want it to be. I think I cast on between 60 and 80 stitches but I cannot remember for sure.
• Knit, Purl, Knit Purl till the end of the row
• Purl, Knit, Purl Knit till the end of row two
• Repeat rows one and two until the blanket is the size you want it to be.

I knit it for my grandma for Christmas and now I am seriously considering making one for myself.  As you can see I thoroughly enjoyed wrapping myself in this blanket!

Although Eric and I have lived in our house for nearly two years, our walls are pretty much empty.  Before we moved into this house our walls were filled with cheap mass produced IKEA prints.  Over the past two years we have been slowly collecting new bits and bobs to decorate our walls.

In the interest of saving money and exploring my artistic side I thought I would try my hand at painting and in a couple of hours after work one evening I completed my very own piece of abstract art.

While the painting turned out OK, I am not crazy about the colour scheme.  I got a little carried away and added a few too many colours.

To complete this project you will need:

• Canvas
• Acrylic Paints
• Foam Brush

Once you gather all your supplies, the painting comes together in a snap.  It is just a matter of mixing your colours and dapping on the paint.

I have never been into keeping a journal and I thought a memory jar would be a great way to remember some of the highlights to come in 2012.Instead of writing in a journal, Eric and I will be jotting down memory snippets throughout the year. Monday night we filled out our first memory card with a trip to the skating rink.  In 7 and a half years it was the first time we ever went skating together!

This project is so easy… I stenciled my vase in half an hour while watching TV.  As I worked on the project, I just kept thinking about how fun it will be to read all the cards on December 31st 2012!

Stenciled Memory Jar

Materials:

• Stencils
• Paint
• Masking tape
• Foam Brush
• Vase

Directions:

• Tape down the stencil
• Dap the stencil with paint
• Move onto the next letter
• Now have some patience and let the vase dry!

If you want to get the party started and entertain your guests for hours on end, set up an inexpensive, homemade photo booth.  This is a fun and creative activity that will add excitement to any event.

To build my photo booth, I bought three clamp lamps from IKEA, 2 upright lamps and a box of cheap accessories from the dollar store. We also used my Nikon D60, a tripod, and a camera remote.

We positioned the upright lights three feet on either side of the camera so the light hits the subject from both sides (You can only see one light in the photo, the other one is directly to the left, just around the corner in the kitchen.)  This light set-up minimizes the shadows and creates better lighting.  We also added more light by  clamping the extra IKEA lights onto the upright lamp poles and pointing them towards the center of the backdrop.

To set the mood I set the mood and create a backdrop, I threw up some doily snowflakes.

Once the lights are set up, set the camera to auto and you are good to go! The result was lots and lots of fun!!  Have a look for yourself!

For more photos check out the Big Box Detox Facebook Page and while you are at it become a fan!!

This is such an easy DIY project.  It is cheap, quick and the final result is a clean, minimalist and elegant Christmas ornament.

How to Make a Stamped Clay Christmas Ornament:

Directions

1. Roll out your air dry stone clay (I bought mine at Michael’s).  I used a glass because I did not want to contaminate my rolling pin.
2. Using your letter stamps, add a word, name or date.
3. Select a cookie cutter and cut our your ornament.  Use a straw cut out a small hole at the top of the ornament.
4. Carefully pick up your ornament and smooth its edges.  Place it in a safe spot and allow it to dry for 24 hours.