November 16, 2017

DIY Hanging Ladder

November 16, 2017/ Alexandra Evjen

A couple months ago, I finished my first bathroom renovation, but the finishing touches had yet to be put on. In fact, I still don't have a toilet paper holder. Haha! But one of the latest additions to the bathroom is this rope ladder that is serving as my towel rack solution. It's all thanks to Janet Crowther, DIY mastermind, who brought my vision to life, and she also has given you FREE step-by-step instructions.

I met Janet through Pinterest, actually. We were both part of the first and only group Pinterest Ambassadors. I had just given birth to Levi, and I had traveled all of the way to San Francisco when he was just four weeks old. It was one of those trips I didn't want to miss, so off to Pinterest we went. Janet was so kind and sweet, and after meeting her I discovered her eye for trends and design is AMAZING. She is a stylist to the core, and has a way of explaining how to do things in simple ways. Her DIYs feel approachable and achievable. No Pinterest fails with this girl!

In fact, you can get her beautiful book, A Well-Crafted Home, to get all of her amazing DIYs. It's a fabulous gift for the holidays, and it makes a great coffee table book too.

But back to the the ladder...Man, it was the perfect addition to the space. It doesn't take a up a lot of room, and it holds more than a typical towel rack. It also makes the space feel taller because it is hung from the ceiling to the floor. Check out the tools and materials you need to make your own, and follow the step-by-step instructions below to make one for your home.

TOOLS & MATERIALS:
(2) 1” x 48” wood round dowel
Measuring Tape
Pencil
Rotary saw or hand saw
Scrap piece of flat wood
Power drill
13/32“ drill bit
6/64” drill bit
Sandpaper
20 ft of ⅜” solid braid rope
Duck tape (best to use black if using black rope)
Scissors
(8) 6D 2” finishing nails
Hammer
Nail set (optional)
Natural pine wood putty (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Measure, mark and cut each dowel into 3 even sections (approx 16” lengths).
Measure 1” in from both ends of each dowel and mark with a pencil. Holding the wood firmly, at the 1” mark drill a 13/32” hole through the diameter of the dowel, on both ends. Make sure to drill straight up and down and that both holes are aligned. Repeat and drill through all 6 dowels. You will have 2 extra 16” dowel lengths in case one is off or for practice drilling.
Load the drill with the 6/64” bit and drill into the end of each dowel perpendicular to the ⅜” holes. Going straight through the length of the dowel and right at the center of ⅜” hole. Drill both ends of all 6 dowels.
Sand the ends of the dowels smooth as well as the holes. Wrap a small piece of sandpaper around your pencil to sand inside the 13/32” hole. Make it as smooth as possible so the rope doesn’t snag when threading through.
Tape both ends of rope tightly with duck tape. Find the center of the rope and tape around. Cut the center of the tape creating two 10 ft lengths of rope. Fold one end of rope over onto itself at 12” and form an overhand loop knot. Pull tightly so it stays in place. Repeat on one side to the other length of rope. Make sure the loops are even in size and adjust if needed.
From the bottom of one overhand loop knot measure 21” down and place a ½” piece of duck tape very tightly around. Measure 14” down from the duct tape and wrap another piece around. Repeat 2 more times measuring 14” down from each piece of tape. You should have 4 pieces of tape total. Hold the unwrapped piece of rope next to the tapped one and copy the placement, make sure the knots at the top stay even and tape placement is exactly the same on both.
Lay the 2 pieces of rope on the floor about a foot apart, knots to one side. Take one dowel and slide the taped ends of rope (opposite of the knot)s through the 13/32” holes. Slide it all the way up to the top pieces of tape, the tape should be inside each dowel, hidden by the holes. Repeat with 3 more dowels bringing them up to the remaining tape stations.
Make sure that all the dowels are level and even across the rope. Adjust as you go and check after each nail is placed because once you nail them in you will not be able to adjust! Starting with the top dowel, hammer one finish nail into the small drill hole on each side of the dowel. There will be a bit of resistance when you reach the rope so make sure to hammer straight and forcefully so the nail doesn’t come out where it’s not supposed to. Hammer all 8 nails into the dowels.
This step is optional. If you would like a seamless look on the side, use the nail set and hammer to push the nail further into the dowel and beneath the woods surface. Then fill the small hole in with wood putty. Once the putty is dry use sandpaper to buff off any excess putty from the surface.
Knot both ends of rope right under the bottom dowel. Cut the rope 2.5” from the bottom of the knots. Using your fingers separate the strands of rope and fluff them to create a tassel.
To make the top knot tassels cut the short end of rope 2.5” from the bottom of the knots. Using your fingers separate the strands of rope and fluff them to create a tassel. Trim any longer strands to make even ends.
Hang the ladder from the ceiling using large ceiling hooks.

Tutorial by Janet Crowther, author of A Well-Crafted Home; Photos by Rennai Hoefer

December 10, 2014

DIY Winter Terrarium

December 10, 2014/ Alexandra Evjen

This post is sponsored by Coca-Cola Licensing.

Terrariums have become quite popular over the past two years. More an more people want to learn how to grow things in their home and breathe life into the stale air of the indoors. Usually, you will find succulents and cacti in terrariums, and even those will hold up well in the cooler months, we thought it would be fun to create winter terrariums. (This is a great craft to do with your kids too).

Instead of sand we used fake snow, and instead of succulents we use mini pine trees. See how below:

View More: http://melissajill.pass.us/cocacola

1| Choose your terrarium. You can use a variety of things, and even a glass dome on a plate. We chose these West Elm faceted terrariums.

2| Fill the bottom of your terrarium with fake snow that you can purchase at any craft store. Then add some moss, and then sprinkle some more snow.

3| Place your winter objects inside. We used miniature trees that can be found at Hobby Lobby. You could also put a tiny deer or even build a mini snowmen with pom-poms and cotton balls.

4| You're finished! Now you just have to choose where you want to put it in your home.

Photography by Melissa Jill, Floral design by Hoot and Holler, Art Direction by Alex Evjen.

December 02, 2014

How to Spruce Up a Fake Wreath

December 02, 2014/ Alexandra Evjen

This post is sponsored by Coca-Cola.

Decorating for the holidays is one of the best traditions of all. Growing up in Wisconsin we always bought a real Christmas tree and had real wreaths hung on our doors, but living in Arizona when the temperatures can still get into the 80's during the day, real greens dry out quickly. So, for the past 8 years I have opted for faux evergreen, and I must say it's a lot easier, less messy, better for the environment and more cost effective. However, there's just something missing when you know it's fake. So, here's a little DIY process on how you can spruce up our fake wreath to get the best of both worlds:

Materials Needed: One fake wreath Two to three different bundles of real greens or berries Florist wire Shears Ribbon to hang wreath

Steps:

1| Choose a simple fake evergreen wreath. I found mine at Ikea.

2| Buy a couple bunches of greens and berries from your local grocery store or florist. (You can even include air plants). We used eucalyptus and red berries. I've seen magnolia leaves and rosemary used as well. You want to add different textures than the evergreen to give dimension and color. It will help the wreath appear fuller.

3| Clip a small spray of berries, poke it through until you can see the stem in the back of the wreath. Then fasten the stem to the wreath using florist wire (you can purchase it at Michael's).

4| Repeat step three with the other live greenery you purchased. Alternate around the wreath.

5| Once you have gone around the whole wreath, select your ribbon and tie it to your door or place your wreath around your dog for a picture perfect photo. (Our golden-doodle, Wendy, was a real sport).