Sunday 26 October 2014

Stuck on how you want to decorate a room? Here's a wee design tip that can help you get your ideas together!


Hiya folks, hope you've all had a good Sunday chilling out and getting set for the new week ahead! 

This week I'm going to give you a wee interior design tip!  Something that can be done fairly quickly and easily, and can help you when deciding how you want to decorate a room!  It's a Mood Board!!! 


What is a Mood Board?

A Mood Board is basically a collection of images and materials on a board to help you put across what kind of atmosphere, style or concept you are after.

It's a great thing to help you collect your ideas in one space and to visualise how you want the room to look in the end.

You can also use specific keywords when creating the board, for example 'warm and natural' or 'modern and futuristic', which can help when you are collecting inspirational images for your board.


How do you make a Mood Board?

It's really easy to make a mood board.  There are two types: actual and virtual.  The actual mood board is one that has pictures taken from magazines and the like.  The virtual mood board is produced on a computer/tablet.

PowerPoint can be used to create a virtual mood board because you can make up a page of images of materials and products from the internet that you can use in your design.


 
 
  
 
An example of a PowerPoint Mood Board I made to
help a friend get some inspiration for decorating their room 
 
Pinterest is another good way to create a virtual mood board because you can easily search for images on the site and create a board specifically for a room by pinning them onto that board!  That way you can see what images you have gathered all in one space.  You can check out my Pinterest page (link on the right!) and see the boards I have created - just to give you an idea.
I do love Pinterest!  I'm always on it and pinning things all the time.  I prefer to make actual mood boards though, probably because I had to do that for Uni design projects but also, as I said in my last post, I love collaging!!!  I like to sit down, tear out images from magazines and stick them down onto a board with swatches and samples, and create an actual board in front of me!  As well as seeing the images you have chosen, the samples give you an idea of what the materials and finishes you have chosen will actually feel like!
Here are some examples of my Mood Boards used at Uni:
 


 

Mood boards aren't just for interior design!

That's right, you can make a mood board for anything: from outfit ideas to party planning to explaining what kind of person you are etc.  


A Mood Board I created when I
started College to show who I am
 
 
Like the interior design version, it is good because it helps you to put together your ideas and figure out what you want.
 
So, in a nutshell, mood boards are a FAB thing that are easy to make to help you out if you are stuck, or are overloaded with ideas, or just to keep you on track!
 
Okay, so that's me.  I hope this helps!  If anyone is redecorating, try making a mood board!  Let me know what you think!  Give it a go and let me know if it does help!
 
Thanks for reading, folks!  I'll be back next week with my usual Sunday blog post.  
Until then...see ya!

  

Sunday 19 October 2014

Jewellery organisation: A cheap and easy way!!

Hey guys!!  Hope you've all had a fab week! 
 
This week I’m going to do a wee organisation-y post, an easy DIY that anyone can do!  I fancied doing this post as I recently had a jewellery clear-out and wanted to have some sort of display for my jewellery.  So I thought I would post what I did!   
 
This is quite an easy and fairly cheap DIY, that you don't have to spend a lot of money on for a cool, quirky little storage idea!!!
 
So, a while back I 'revamped' an old bedside table that I've had for years, just to give it a new look!  I was still at University at the time and I became a wee bit obsessed with collaging using newspaper text, magazine photos and sketches.  I did this in almost every project sketchbook, and thought it would be quite a unique thing to do for a bedside table!

 
 
 

 
I normally use the table for extra storage space, but then realised that the sides could be used to hang things from, for example, jewellery!  I tried a few things out but most of them never really worked, like using elastic hairbands to hang earrings and necklaces (heavy necklaces + elastic band string = FAIL).  It was basically just ‘trial and error’ to see what worked and what didn’t!


Well, I finally managed to get something that worked!  Yay!
 
 
  
I saw these stick-on hooks in a home-ware store that would be quite handy for hanging my necklaces/hair accessories on!  They came in a multi-pack, so I had quite a few to use!  Then I thought ‘Could I use two of these hooks as brackets to hold up something that I could put my rings on as well?’  So I was trying to think what I could use - pencils, string…and I ended up using these fat jumbo straws, which I found in a Chinese supermarket.  These straws are normally used for bubble tea, but they are actually quite sturdy and are really good to store rings on!!!  
 
Therefore, all I really used for this were hooks and straws!  Easy DIY!!!
 
These are the photos of the finished jewellery display!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
I guess that's it for this week’s post guys!  I hope this was helpful and has inspired at least one person out there!  That would be fab! J
 
Until next time...see ya!

 

Sunday 12 October 2014

Photo post: Sight-seeing in September!!

Hey guys!!  Hope you all had a fab week!  I’m back again for my weekly Sunday post! 
 
Okay, so I decided when I began my own little blog that I would like to do a post every now and again which shows what I've been up to in the past couple of months or so!  Like a wee adventure post...
 
So here is a random bunch of photographs from days out and about!!
 
 






 
 Botanic Gardens, Glasgow
 
 

 
 

 
 West End of Glasgow
 
 


 
Falkirk Wheel
 


 
The Kelpies, Falkirk
 
 
 
 
So that’s it for this week’s post!  Enjoy the week ahead and I'll be back with a new post next Sunday. 


Until next time…See ya!


Sunday 5 October 2014

A few fab ideas using Washi Tape!!


Hey guys!!  Hope you all had a fab week!  I’m back again for my weekly Sunday post!  This week I’m talking Washi Tape!
 
This amazing tiny roll of printed tape is AH-MAY-ZING!!  Honestly!!  I found out about it on Pinterest about a year ago and thought ‘This stuff is fab! Where can I get it??’


You know what, I found it!  One week ago!  I was like, ‘Yay...FINALLY!!’  I found it in an art store in town!  Obviously since I saw them I got loads!  Literally!!  Maybe I bought too many to be honest…but there were too many fab designs!  I could NOT resist!!!


When I got home I had to try them out, so I stuck them to everything!  My phone, diary, stationary…everything!  It makes everything look better!  Haha.


So the main question I got asked when I told people about my Washi Tape obsession was ‘What is it?’
 
Well in this week’s post I will explain what it is and a few ideas of ways it can be used!
 
These are just a few things I’ve used Washi Tape for, but there are probably hundreds of other uses for it!!
  


 
What is Washi Tape?
 

The name pretty much translates as Japanese paper.  It is basically a decorative masking tape mostly made out of bamboo, hemp, rice or wheat. 

The tape is really easy to use as it has a low adhesive, which means it can be stuck down and taken off with very little difficulty depending on the surface it is put on to!

Like masking tape, Washi Tape is quite opaque so it can be put over paper and written on (to an extent).  Therefore, it is good for arts and crafts projects such as card making and scrapbooking, among others.

There is a wide variety of prints available, from floral designs to little animals, which makes the tape unique, colourful and enjoyable to use.
  

My creations (some of the things I used the tape for!)


 
Tea light candle holders
(Obviously take care with lit candles, jar will heat up!!! Don’t leave unattended!!!)

 
 
Hair pin storage

 
 Jewellery storage
 

 
 
DIY dream jar
 
 
 
Diary / Planner organisation 
 
 
 Phone / MP3 case decoration

 

So that’s it for this week’s post.  Have fun Washi-taping things!!  Enjoy the week ahead and I'll be back with a new post next Sunday. 


Until next time…See ya!