In week 4 of the One Room Challenge I installed peel and stick wallpaper from RoomMates. I love RoomMates because they have such a beautiful variety of peel and stick wallpaper and wall decals. They even have stick tiles if you’re looking to add instant eye candy in your kitchen as a backsplash! I decided to go with a creamy neutral botanical wallpaper that would fit right in with my neutral palette and help to add in a little more texture to the room.

I put wallpaper on only one wall, and am using it as an accent wall instead of wallpapering the whole room. I feel like it adds a little bit of interest to the space without feeling too overwhelming.

I love peel-and-stick wallpaper because it’s literally as easy as peeling off the backing and applying it to your wall. No need for pastes or paintbrushes. Although, you do need a few tools to make the process a little bit easier.

1~A box cutter to cut excess paper

2~A putty knife to tuck paper behind a heater or around window trim

3~A damp cloth to smooth out all the wrinkles

Here’s a quick video and rundown of the process:

3 tips that I’ve found that make the process of hanging peel and stick wallpaper much easier are:

1. Having the right tools – A box cutter to cut excess paper -A putty knife to tuck paper behind a heater or around window trim – A damp cloth to smooth out all the wrinkles. I prefer a wet cloth over using a putty knife to smooth everything out because it’s gentle on the paper and smooths everything out better!
2. Cut your strips of wallpaper to size allowing a few extra inches on the top and the bottom. This will give you a little wiggle room and give you a nice clean line when you trim with your box cutter. It will also make it much easier to line up your wallpaper without the added weight of the roll.
3. Only peel about 6 inches of the backing off at a time and smooth as you go. This will make sure the paper doesn’t curl in and stick to itself. This process is the easiest because you can smooth as you go without having to peel it completely off and start from scratch.

Wallpaper source: https://roommatesdecor.comLight

Light fixture source: wooden light fixture

Thanks so much for reading along!

Much Love,

Korilyn ~ From the farmhouse life

Here we go – Week two! I hope you’re ready! For me, this was the hardest part. We have used this room for storage for the past 4 years… It was so full you couldn’t even access the room. It was filled to the brim with stuff! Cleaning it all out was the BIGGEST chore – Ever! Ok, I may be exaggerating but it was a challenge to find new places to put everything.

Some of the stuff in there has been there since we moved into this house! That was almost 5 years ago! Can you tell I’ve been avoiding this area of our home?  I knew we had some serious organizing to do and so in order to get myself going, I had to 5-4-3-2-1 it! If you’re a Mel Robbins fan, you’ll know what I’m talking about – If you’re not and you’re like why did this woman just count down? Do yourself a favor and read the book The 5 Second Rule! It changed my life and I have a feeling it can help you too.

Ok – off-topic. Sorry! We started by getting all of the “keep” items out and making a trash and donate pile with the rest. Then, little by little we worked on organizing and putting things away. Once everything was pulled out of the office, I admit I was a little more motivated. The office is right off of the landing so that’s where everything got put. It was totally in the way and hard to maneuver around. I made a goal to work on it every day for an hour until it was done.

If you want to feel really satisfied… watch this time-lapse video of the actual cleanout. What is it about time-lapse videos that are just so satisfying to watch?!

Be sure to check back here Thursday for the next One Room Challenge post. It’ll be on Installing sound-proof walls! A total must for any office space!

As always Pals,

Thanks for reading along!

Much love,

Korilyn ~ From the Farmhouse Life

Lately, I’ve been pulling more natural warmer tones into my home. Our house is large and feels kind of stark and cold. More natural linens and warm tans/beiges really help to add that cozy feeling. I’ve been in love with large clay pots I’ve seen at Pottery Barn that would complete the vibe I’ve been transitioning into. But at this time in my life, I just can’t drop that kind of cash on decor pieces. Then I saw my friend Bre from @brepurposed on the gram transform her lamp with just a few easy steps into this gorgeous clay-looking Pottery Barn /Restoration Hardware creation! I decided to give it a go – and I’m so glad I did! I’m so in love and can’t believe I actually made this! Below I’ll show you each step so you too can create gorgeous vases/ pitches/lamps.. really whatever your heart desires… for a fraction of the cost of what you’d pay for brand new! I’ll also have a video of my project from start to finish at the bottom.

To start, pick out your piece! This is where you can have fun… Really anything will work. Don’t worry if it’s too shiny and smooth. We’ll be adding texture to help give it that clay look! I chose two large jars/vases and a pitcher. I’ve had these jars for many years… Remember when Chevron pattern was all the rage? Well, I jumped on that bandwaggon and displayed these beauties proudly. They’ve since been stored in my attic just waiting to be used for the right DIY.

Next, get all your supplies together

1. drywall mud
2. Plaster of Paris
3. sandpaper
4. paint of your choice
5. mud from outside
6. paper towels
7. paintbrushes (small and medium)

Thankfully, I had all of these supplies on hand. Plaster of Paris is what you use when you’re mixing up your own chalk paint recipe – and lord knows I mix up a lot of chalk paint so I had plenty of that on hand.

Step one

With your small brush, lightly spackle over your vase. It’s ok if it goes on thicker in some areas – after everything is dry,  we’ll give it a good sand to get rid of anything loose. Keep going until your entire vase is covered and then let dry. Make sure to rinse your brush well because you’ll be using this size again in another step.

Step 2

When your vase is dry – give it a light sand to get rid of all of the loose pieces of spackle. It’s ok if some spots of your vase are bare again.. it’ll only add texture and dimension if some areas are more raised than others.

Step 3

Mix 1/2 cup of plaster of Paris and about 1/4 cup water together. It’s ok if it’s a little watery. Plaster of Paris thickens over time so you may have to add a little more water as you go or even start with a fresh batch to continue to have the right consistency. With your small brush, paint your vase with the plaster of Paris mixture until you have your desired texture and until it’s fully covered. Remember to work quickly or be prepared to make a new mixture because your plaster will harden in your dish. Let dry completely.

Step 4

Choose a paint color. I used Glidden Off-White. It has a subtle beige that really adds a lot of warmth.  Use your medium-sized brush and paint over your entire vase and let dry.

Step 5

Mix dirt and water to create a thick mud mixture (not watery) and completely coat your vase. It’s ok to put it on thick. After it dries, take a paper towel and brush off any loose mud from your vase.

Step 6

Lastly, grab a paper towel and dip back into your paint and sponge it on in small areas on your vase. This is so you can get your desired color and also to help capture a more multidimensional look.

That’s it guys! How cool was that?!

Here is a video from start to finish of my projects and just how simple it really was!

Want to shop this post for supplies? Just click an image below!

As always pals – Thanks for reading along!

Much love,

Korilyn ~ from The Farmhouse Life

This one room challenge for decorating our office is going to be amazing.   Come see what design details I have chosen!

I’m so excited to finally announce that I am a guest participant in the One Room Challenge for the Spring 2020 season. When I signed up to participate in this fun decor challenge, I knew exactly what room was begging to be renovated. Our home office! First off – with everyone at home now, having a quiet place to work is a must! Secondly – It is currently being used as a storage spot that is desperately in need of a good cleaning. And third of all – It’s such an eyesore with a sheet draped over the doorway (so no one can peep inside)! I just can’t take it anymore.

When we bought this old farmhouse we knew that home projects would be a big part of our lives for many years to come. We bought a 4,000 sq ft saltbox home that was built in the 1700s. Thankfully the last owners brought it up to the 20th century but stopped updating somewhere in the 1970s. Because we have been doing the renovation work in our free time, (we are self-employed) it takes us quite a while to finish a home decor project. That’s why I jumped at the opportunity to get in on the One Room Challenge.  I knew it would be the encouragement we needed to get the office reno done and in a timely fashion.

Week 1 – The before…

You can’t see it in this picture, but two of the walls are covered with dark wooden boards. The scary wallpaper you see here will come down and the wall color will change. The ceilings are very low and in need of a little TLC. There is a closet, but I’m not sure we are going to keep it. You see, it pops out over our staircase, cutting into the stairway space. I think I would rather have ceiling height over my staircase and have a beautiful chandelier than have a closet in my office.

The plan…

I’m going for warm, sophisticated, and library-esque. Something visually appealing. The first thing we have to do is something about the ceiling. We’ll see if It can be painted and patched – but if that doesn’t work we might have to tear it down and slap up a new one. Next, we’ll have to paint the walls to lighten and brighten up the space. I’m going for a warm off-white. Not quite tan or beige… just a really creamy off-white. I’ll also add an accent wall with a beautiful wallpaper from Roommatesdecor . Then, we’ll finally put a real door on this baby. I’m thinking a farmhouse sliding barn door. We have some old hardware we found in our barn that we’re going to use to install the door. It’s so cool and very authentic. And lastly, all the furniture and decor. We are trying to use a lot of what we have… but we’ll definitely be ordering a few things to help complete our space.

Alright – That’s it! I’ll be back next week with week two’s progress! Head over to check out the other amazing participants and to see their design plans!

As always pals, Thanks for reading along

Much Love,

Kori ~ At the Farmhouse life

With the holidays around the corner now is the time to stock up on bar cart essentials and styling!

Stocking up on bar cart essentials is always a good idea. Especially with everything going on right now! We can’t go out and get a drink – But that shouldn’t stop us from making a cocktail at home and enjoying ourselves. Since my husband and I cant have a date night at the moment we’re treating Friday evenings like “date night” by making a couple of drinks and spending a little one-on-one quality time together.

Now, I know what you’re thinking –

Isn’t being at home quarantined with your significant other enough one-on-one time? Well – For us we don’t really have a lot of time to spend with one another on a regular basis. He spends most of his time upstairs doing all of his work appointments while I’m downstairs taking care of the children, the house, etc. And in the evenings I try to get all my work done for the day while he switches into parent mode. Needless to say, life can get busy – even when you’re stuck at home. So let’s have a drink and enjoy ourselves!

Want to stock up on essentials but you’re not sure where to start?

Knowing what items to stock up on really depends on what your favorite drinks are. For instance, we love a good Moscow mule and I wouldn’t say no to a mimosa on a Saturday morning either. Bloody Marys are fun and probably my go-to drink is always a good old glass of cabernet. Really, whatever your fancy – you can probably bet items like rum, tequila, vodka, and wine are a good idea to have on hand. Then grab those mixes… Margarita, ginger beer, orange juice, coke, cranberry juice, limes, Mint, etc.  These are perfect bar cart essentials!

I like to hide some of the smaller nips in a cute cookie jar to style on my bar cart and I also have a marble cutting board too. This way everything is accessible when you are ready to make that cocktail and slice those limes. Also, make sure your bar cart has all the tools it needs to make your favorite drinks too and of course the appropriate glasses.

Want to shop this post?? Click an image below!

Looking for ways to style your bar cart?! Check out this short video below!

I hope you enjoy date night as much as I do!   Cheers!

As always pals – Thanks for reading along!

Much Love,

Kori ~ from The Farmhouse Life

I recently put together a budget small bathroom remodel and even with the budget constraints it turned out pretty amazing!

Hey guys – I’m so excited to finally show you our bathroom renovation reveal. We’ve worked for the last few months in our spare time… buying some things and using what we already had to create a big-budget look with a  pretty small budget. Everything will be linked at the bottom.

To start

We peeled up the old peel and stick tile and surprisingly laid down new peel and stick tile. We just took it up a notch by purchasing faux wood tiles and laying them down in a classic herringbone pattern. Check it out here! Then we grouted. Did you know you can grout peel and stick tile?

Next, we painted the vanity

Painting the bathroom vanity was pretty simple. I used paint I already had called little black dress by Behr paint. And oddly enough it has more blue undertones then black. I mixed up a chalk paint recipe and then sealed the vanity with a polycrylic. Then I updated the hardware… this really helped to give this vanity a polished stylish look.

Then, we updated the mirror and light fixture

This is such an easy way to give any look an upgrade. Light fixtures can be pretty inexpensive and so can mirrors! Both of mine are from Amazon! I feel like updating these two things really helped this outdated bathroom turn into the modern-boho vibes I was going for.

Lastly, we put on the finishing touches.

I have to be honest… Installing all of the finishing touches was probably the most exciting part of the whole renovation. We put up new brass towel hooks, a shower curtain, plant hangers, toilet paper holder, a shelf, and a new blind! These bathroom decor items really brought the whole look home, and made it cohesive.

Check out our finished project below

Want to shop this look?!

As always pals – Thanks for reading along!

Much love,

Kori ~ from the farmhouse life

I recently installed peel and stick tile in a herringbone pattern in our bathroom and here are the results and tutorial!

When I first showed my husband the tile I wanted for our new bathroom floor he was all about it. It’s inexpensive peel and sticks floor tile – and looks like wood flooring. He was a little more apprehensive when I showed him what pattern I wanted it laid in. Although I did I tell him I’d do the brunt of it, I’d just need him for the tricky angles. Low and behold –  most of the angles were tricky and above my pay grade. So I told him if he took over, I’d go and make him homemade donuts. He thought this was a fair trade.

Now, I’m not going to lie to you – if you’re expecting this project to take you a few hours… sadly It will not. This project was time-consuming. Our bathroom is small, and it still took us 8-10 hours. There will be an angle to cut with almost every piece you put down, due to the herringbone pattern. At least, this was true in our case because our bathroom is narrow and only the first strip of floor tiles that went down didn’t need to be cut.

OK – onto the tutorial… Below I’ll list all of the material and tools we used just in case you want to give this project a go.

To start, lay out a centerline…

This will give you a reference point to ensure the focal point of your herringbone design is centered in your space. Then you can start laying your tiles in a V-like shape alternating each tile to butt up against the top side of the tile. Do your best to estimate floor tile placement so you can avoid having small pieces of tile in high traffic areas (like a doorway). 

 1. Use a tape measure and a sliding T-Bevel…

To ensure you are obtaining the correct angles at which to cut your tiles use a pencil and the T-Bevel, trace a line on your tile. 

2. Lay the tile on a piece of wood…

so you don’t cut into the tiles below. Firmly cut along the pencil line, scoring the surface of the tile but not cutting all the way through the tile. You then quickly and firmly snap off the tile along the scored line.

3. Place the tile in its spot to ensure proper fit…

and trim if necessary. If you plan to grout the tile, make sure your spacers are in appropriate spots.

4. Pull the backing paper off the tile…

and using the heat gun, warm the adhesive on the back of the tile. You may also consider putting adhesive on the floor itself.

5. Carefully put the tile in place…

ensuring proper spacing by using the tile spacers. Finally, use a J roller to firmly press the tile down (begin in the center of the tile and roll outwards) to ensure proper adhesion. 

Helpful hints: 

1. 1. When cutting, make sure you use a sharp blade. Take a scrap piece of tile to practice scoring and breaking if you’re struggling to get clean cuts. The key is to score the tile deep enough to ensure a clean break, but to not press so hard that you are trying to cut all the way through the tile.
   2. For tricky corners or angles, using a piece of poster board can work nicely to make a stencil that you can bend and flex to cut to fit the desired shape, and then trace the shape onto the tile. 
   3. Inspect your baseboard/trim board ahead of time, and see if there is space for the tile to slide under the trim to ensure a cleaner, neater finish. 

Here is a video from start to finish of our project!

Enjoy

Want to shop this post? Click on an image below!

And click here for the tile we used 

As always pals – thanks for reading along!

Much Love,

Kori ~ at the farmhouse life

Hey all! Valentine’s day is around the corner and I don’t know about you, but it’s a family day around here. The kids and I generally put on as much red as we can muster up and spend the day cutting out red construction paper hearts to string for garland. We finish off the evening with some yummy food on our fanciest dishes, toast to our family with sparkling cider, and eat yummy Valentine’s Day cake! On top of all that we surprise each other with small gifts  – some are homemade and others not so much. So I’ve rounded up some of my family’s favorite Valentine goodies for yall from the one and only Walmart! Some of the items are fun and very affordable and others like my oh so favorite scent – Coco Chanel Mademoiselle are a bit on the pricey side. But this has to be my all-time favorite scent and when I wear it I get so many compliments. On the other hand, Donna Karan cashmere mist comes in a close second and is much more affordable! So whether your shopping for your family or yourself – I think you’ll thoroughly enjoy some of our favorites! 

Just click on an image on the slide to shop!

In this tutorial I will show you how to update your bathroom fixtures with spray paint!

As you know – I’m currently in a blog series called bathroom refresh where I’m trying to update my bathroom on only a $100 budget. This is actually quite hard to do – so I’m trying to pull as many things from my house as possible to save the budget for statement items such as new light fixtures and pulls. Now – You might be confused because the title of my blog is called “How to update your bathroom fixtures with spray paint” but in my case, my light fixture and pulls are so outdated – spray paint wasn’t going to fix it. I decided to use my budget to try and buy a light clearanced out, new pulls, and textiles. So, this meant I had to be willing to repaint a brand new light fixture to get it exactly the customized shade I was looking for. I found a light on clearance for $40 and it was exactly perfect for this DIY tutorial! Except that it was brown and not black. I also pulled a mirror that was the perfect size from my guest room – and it’s also brown and not black. That’s where my handy dandy can of spray paint comes in.

Use the right spray paint

It’s important to always use the right spray paint for your projects. In this case, I’m spray painting metal so enamel paint is best. It will last longer on  metal surfaces compared to lacquer. It also adheres better the the metal. Sometimes I will use a top coat to help seal in the color, but not always. I usually only do that on “high traffic” items that get used a lot or touched a lot like chairs, furniture, etc. Because this bathroom mirror and light fixture is a “hung and done” kind of deal, I’m not worried about the paint coming off.

Light coats

You should use 2-3 light coats of paint which is always a good idea when spray painting to ensure you’re getting full coverage. Also, I’ll emphasize LIGHT coats! If you spray it on too thick it’ll probably drip and then it’ll be obvious that it was spray painted. Try and stand a good 12 inches away from your fixtures so that it doesn’t bubble up and look sloppy.

Wedge your tape

It’s important to wedge your tape right up underneath the frame of your mirror so you don’t “accidentally” leave a thick stripe of spray paint. The more of the tape you get under the frame the better.

The great thing about spray paint is that it only takes seconds to get an even coat… it’s the dry time between coats that can be time-consuming. A half-hour is a good amount of time to wait in between coats if the coats are light.

If you don’t have fixtures – or yours were so outdated like mine then you should check out my latest post on choosing the right fixtures for your bath!

Stay Tuned for the next post in the series to see these bad boys hung up!

Until next time –

Korilyn – at the farmhouse life

I am excited to share my bathroom refresh plus my painting hack that will save you time!

To start my bathroom refresh I started with a vision board. I went with farmhouse meets boho…If you know me – surprise surprise! Those are my two favorite decor styles. My bathroom currently is very brown. So to start things off I needed a paint job.

Time-saving painting hack

I’ll be perfectly honest – I do not enjoy painting. I’m not a prep work person and painting is all about that prep work – am I right?! It takes too much time! I just like to get in – do my project – and get out. Ever wonder how to paint a room quickly without all the painstakingly annoying steps? Well – I’ve discovered a time-saving painting hack where you can paint a room so much faster! Are you ready for it? Glad Press and Seal wrap!! Seriously, just a quick pull, rip, press down and your good to go. Instead of using painter’s tape, just press the wrap to the surfaces you don’t want paint on. Since using this hack – I’ve not only been able to cut down on the prep work… but I make less of a mess! Seriously – at one point my husband had made a no painting rule for me because I always made a mess – trick’s on him because I hate painting lol! You know, all the prep work right? (Like lying down a drop cloth and taping) Seriously, I hate taping!! But using Press and Seal wrap It’s quick and easy to paint without the mess.

Just Press and go

Did you also know that you can wrap it around your brush when your done painting (without soaking) to use the next day? That is if you’re working on the same project with the same colors. It keeps the brush moist overnight. I know I used the word moist… anybody hate that word? My sister does – literally cringes when I use it. That one for you sis!  Anyway –  I finished up the first coat today and I’ll back at it tomorrow with another coat.

Be sure to check out number 2 in this bathroom refresh series here. Each post will show the progress of my refresh and have a DIY or two along the way!

Thanks for stopping by!

Love, Korilyn at the farmhouse life