A Whole Lot of Mis-treatin' Going On!

I've received many comments and questions about the lamps in my family room. Everyone seems to be drawn in by that very large and luxurious ribbon adorning the shades. To answer the question...yes, I did that myself. In fact, I usually change out the ribbon with the seasons or to match holiday decor. I think it is one of the easiest, most inexpensive changes you can make to a room. It takes zero effort, but makes a real statement.

A lot of bang for your buck!

This lamp started out as a plain jane paper shade from Ikea. I used leftover fabric from my daughter's crib bedding to cover them for a custom look. All it takes is a bit of folding, tucking, and a smidge of hot glue.

Easy!

Ok, here's another version of the ribbon tied lampshade. I bought these lamps ages ago. I grew tired of the trim that was on there, so I just ripped it off and hot glued leftover trim from the kitchen curtains.

Voila!

Now to be completely honest, this lamp is not my favorite. But it's just not in the budget right now to buy new lamp shades for no other reason than I'm tired of looking at them. So...what's a thrifty gal to do? I'll give you one hint...it involves hot glue and some leftover trim.

Mind blowing...I'm sure!

Another quick and easy fix for a boring lamp shade...ribbon and scrapbook supplies.

Ok, this is one of my new favorite things to do. Wrap your candles in strips of fabric, fray the edges, and tie it up with raffia or ribbon. Does it get any easier than that?

If you don't have any fabric scraps lying around, I bet you could find some scrapbook paper. This is such a low cost way to really spruce up your decor. Remember these from Christmas? Yep...one of my all time favorite arrangements!

Some of you might remember when I wrote about making this frame. I LOVE to copy high end things for little to no money. It is so much fun...and super addictive!

And yet another low cost mis-treatment. This bulletin board was made from a plain canvas wrapped in fabric. I'd been searching for a cute bulletin board for my girls' room with no luck. So I decided to make one myself. I love how this turned out. And I love that it has that custom, one of a kind look.

A post on mis-treating just wouldn't be complete without an actual WINDOW mistreatment, now would it? I made two panels from one twin size flat sheet cut in half. Then I hot glued some apple green ball fringe to the inner edge. There was absolutely NO sewing involved whatsoever! The trim is glued right on top of the raw edge. No one knows...or cares.

Another no sew project. The panels were made with stitch witchery. The topper that runs the length of the windows is tacked directly to the wall with upholstery tacks and the fringe is ...you guessed it...hot glued. Seriously people, you just can't get any easier than this.

A few years ago I NEVER would have done something like this. I could not allow myself to try new things because I thought it needed to be done perfectly. So, instead of trying it with the possibility of slight imperfection, I just didn't try it at all. So sad! I am so unbelievably glad that I realized what utter poppycock that was. And how silly. Ask yourself...would you rather try something with the possibility that you might LOVE it, or keep on being miserable with the same old same old? I can tell you from personal experience, it is so liberating to let go of those notions of perfection...and LIVE! Work with what you've got. Be creative. Think outside the box.

Try it.

I think you'll like it...and you'll never go back!