While winter is raging on here in the Midwest, I felt the need to “cozy up” my living room a touch. I have a fairly muted color palette in our living room, so I needed to be able to add some warmth without messing up the color scheme drastically. The easiest way to do this is by adding in some textured neutrals.
These little touches constitute my first real jump back into the crafting world post-baby. NONE of these projects is an original idea, none of them took more than 15 minutes to finish, and none of them cost me any money. Slow and steady wins the race, they say.
Note to self: Adjust White Balance on my camera!
These twine-wrapped pears are an easy knock-off of Ballard Designs’ Twine Pears which retail for $39-$49. Ouch. I dug into my stash and pulled out some fake pears that were part of my Dollar Barn Fall decorations and hot glued some dollar store twine to them. My “special” touch was to add a velveteen leaf (also from my stash) to the larger pear.
Obviously, the Ballard Pears are much more refined looking. For that price they should be. Since I used twine from the dollar store, the thickness was really inconsistent and downright bushy in some areas. I just used my scissors and gave the pears a little trim in the most obviously fuzzy areas.
I jumped on the coffee filter wreath bandwagon and whipped this guy up from a piece of an old cardboard box, coffee filters from my pantry, and some white satin ribbon leftover from my cousin’s wedding reception. I will probably change out the ribbon at some point; I would really like some wide green or brown velvet if I can find it for cheap.
My only advice for making one of these wreaths is to separate the filters before you start gluing, since that is the most tedious part.
The most simple of the these three little projects is this sweater-covered vase. I found a vase that I had originally bought at Dollar Tree and held it up to the sleeve of a cable knit sweater that no longer fit me. I cut the sweater slightly longer than the length of the vase. The finished edge of the sleeve is at the bottom of the vase, and the unfinished edge (where I cut) is just tucked into the top of the vase. I threw in some fake hydrangeas that I picked up at the Dollar Tree a few weeks ago, and *voila!*, instant coziness.
What got me started on this whole cozy kick was browsing through this slideshow on BHG.com. If you have a few minutes, click through the suggestions on how to add coziness to your home without spending much, or any, money.
SOME OF MY FAVORITE TIPS FROM THE ARTICLE ARE:
- Using books as décor. I obviously have a special place for books in my heart, and adding a few of your favorites to your rooms just makes people want to snuggle up and read.
- Add vintage items to a room. I love modern furniture with clean lines, but it can come off as being cold and uninviting. If you mix in a few older pieces with the new, you bring in some needed warmth.
- Make your home smell cozy. Scents like cinnamon, fresh linen, and vanilla really make a house more homey.
A FEW THINGS I THINK BHG COULD HAVE ADDED TO THEIR LIST:
- Family pictures. Pictures of loved ones always make a room feel cozier and happier. I love going over to someone’s house and looking through a whole wall of portraits and candids!
- Flickering lights. Not creepy, Bates Motel vacancy sign flickering lights, but the soft and flattering light of candles. For homes where constantly burning candles aren’t practical (with two little ones and a rambunctious dog, mine sure isn’t), flameless candles are inexpensive and pretty.
- Clocks! NOT the digital kind. Yuck. There is is nothing worse than the “deedeedee” of a digital alarm clock. But, a pretty analog clock on a mantel seems old-fashioned, in a good way.
How do you make your home more cozy?
what a cozy space to read or nap! it looks so inviting, i love it!
LOVE! I want to make some of those pears myself…I didn’t know they sold fake fruit at the Dollar store! Thanks so much for linking up to gettin’ crafty on hump day!