Happy New Year and the Top Ten of 2013

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!  It's always fun to go back and take a look through the blog and some of the projects that were completed over the year and see which were more popular than others.  I thought I'd compile a list of top-ten viewed blog posts that I posted in 2013...


Coming in at #10 - Lily's Garden Room.  I love decorating kids' rooms and this one was no exception. Top-to-bottom, I was able to furnish and decorate this room for only $500 and had fun doing it!


#9 - Honeybee Dresser Makeover and Updated Booth Pictures.  I was surprised that this little dresser makeover made the top ten, but it was a fun little project.  I no longer have a large booth like I did in this post because of moving away from Raleigh and I miss having the challenge of keeping it up, but with another impending move when our lease is up, I can't commit to the level of inventory I used to have.

#8 - Five Easy Fall Centerpieces.  This was one of my first posts after moving into the rental home last Summer and before I had a chance to paint the walls, etc.  What I like about this post is that you can use the same ideas listed and apply it for each season using different elements.

#7 - Powder Room Makeover.  After seeing my mom use Sherwin William's Silvermist in her dining room, I knew I wanted to use it somewhere in my home!  I needed to paint the powder room in our former home before putting it on the market so I used the color here and loved it...

#6 - Rug Shopping Tips on a Budget.  After moving into a large, new home with lots of hardwood floors, I felt like I need to spend a small fortune on rugs.  By just doing a little research, I was able to get some stylish, but quality rugs for a fraction of retail and I share all my tips here.

#5- Dresser Makeover with Fabric.  I've been re-habbing furniture for several years and this is one of my favorite makeovers.  I've used Mod Podge to apply all sorts of decorative paper (wall paper, music sheets, etc) to furniture, but this was the first time using fabric and it was so easy!  Because fabric is thicker than paper, I found it much easier to apply and no wrinkling to fight with, plus I loved the added texture.  It's also easier than hand-painting designs with an artist brush.  I will be doing more of these in the future!

#4- Master Bedroom Reveal.  After picking away at projects in this room during 2012, I finally finished it in early 2013.  From chalkboard fireplace to sparkling chandelier, I miss this room a lot now that we are in the temporary rental.  Let's just say my master bedroom now is sort of a dumping ground for things that don't fit in the rest of the house.  I can't wait to get settled again!

#3- Farmhouse Style Front Porch with Pops of Red.  My mom and step-dad spent last winter having their home built and I shared the exterior and front porch last Spring.  I learned quite a bit watching the build-process and I'm tucking that information away for if and when we can build our own custom home.  I need to spend some time over at their house again and take some pictures of their progress decorating on the inside...

#2- Living Room - Dining Room Tour and Q&A.  I posted this right at at the beginning of 2013 so it doesn't surprise me that it has high pageviews for the year, but I finally took some pictures of the living room and dining room together at my former home and answered all sorts of popular questions, wall color, drapery source, etc.  The funny thing is that I changed up these rooms quite a bit right after I look the pictures, but the essentials are still there...

At last... #1- DIY Bench Tutorial.  This really surprised me, but then again, Pinterest loves tutorials!  After scouring the stores for an affordable bench and the Internet for a really good tutorial on how to make a decent one, I decided to just make my own.  The fact that this post had the most pageviews out of the 2013 projects serves as a lesson to me because I have a bad habit of doing project after project and sharing the final result, but not documenting along the way how I do things.  From paint tips to building things, I vow to get better at this for the upcoming year because I'm here to provide not only inspiration to all of you, but share my DIY knowledge as well! 

Hope you enjoyed! Did you have any favorite projects in 2013?  What kind of projects do you have planned this year?

Kristen