Recently, I sliced and dried red pear and orange slices for simple holiday decorations. Soon after, I realized that the dried fruit would look pretty in a bowl of potpourri, too. It is so simple to make, y’all! Therefore, I decided to share how to make a potpourri mix with y’all.
Making potpourri is fairly easy and a great way to add a seasonal scent into a room. Plus, it is an inexpensive, eco-friendly gift idea for friends and family. Simply, place in sachets or jars and tie with ribbon.
Spritz. Store. Enjoy.
How to Make a Potpourri Mix
Potpourri is a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant materials displayed in a decorative bowl or basket. There are many different kinds. Therefore, you can choose from this list of suggested materials what goes into your potpourri. First, choose any greenery, spices, or herbs for natural scent. Then, add color with dried flowers and fruit. Woody materials are absorbent and will hold the scent well. Lastly, extra oils will elevate the scent.
What You Need:
Dried greenery – pine, eucalyptus, bay leaves
Dried fruit – sliced citrus, apples, pears
Dried spices or herbs- cloves, cinnamon sticks, star anise
Dried flowers – rose buds or petals, lavender
Woody filler – pinecones, nutmeg, driftwood, sola wood flowers
Essential oils in spray bottle or oil based room spray
Airtight container or gallon ziplock bag
How to Dry Oranges
You can find more ways to use dried oranges and tips to drying fruit on my friend Susie’s blog. For example, click here to read “How to Dry Oranges” or this blog post for beautiful Natural Gift Wrap Ideas.
1. Preheat oven to 170°F.
2. Cut oranges into 1/8 inch slices.
3. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or a baker’s mat. Then, pat orange slices with a paper towel to dry. Next, lay them on the cookie sheet in a single layer.
4. Bake for approximately 4-6 hours or until dry. To ensure the slices dry evenly and not curl, turn them over every hour. Remove from oven and allow to completely cool before using.
The rose buds are dried from Valentine’s Day years ago.
Essential Oils
You can use a combination of your favorite essential oil scents like citrus or cypress. I purchase essential oils from Doterra, because I know that they are pure and high quality. In addition, I love the Krumpet’s home sprays for the holidays. Find them, here. My favorite scents are the cinnamon, ‘Christmas’ (sweet berry) and shiplap (woodsy).
When working with oils, be aware that some may stain or can be irritable to skin and eyes. Therefore, it is a good idea to wear gloves when handling materials directly covered in oil. However, I wash my hands thoroughly after this project. In addition, I do not spray directly on my wood table or use containers that are used for food.
What You Do:
Gather your materials and spread them out on newspaper or in a flat bowl. Spritz your materials with 15+ sprays of your choice of essential oil.
Wait a few minutes to dry, and store mixture in an airtight container. For example, a lidded jar or ziplock bag works great. Leave this to ‘marinate’ for 48 hours.
Then, pour mixture into a decorative basket or bowl to enjoy for weeks. Once scent begins to dissipate, simply respray.
You can use my code CUTER10 for 10% off everything in the shop, From: Susie.For instance, I display my potpourri in this vintage bread basket that Susie and I found in Round Top, Texas.
If you enjoyed this learning how to make a potpourri mix, save this to your Pinterest board for ‘Things to Make.’ Happy crafting, y’all!
How to Upholster a Stool with Repurposed Materials
Reuse, Repurpose and Relove
Repurposed materials are budget friendly, good for the environment, and a fun way to challenge your creativity. This easy DIY project is a great way to use repurposed materials. For this project, I am giving new life to an old stool by upholstering it and using it as an accent table.
My daughter has a faux fur stool that is a few years old. Consequently, it has seen better days. Therefore, I gave it a quick update by using an old t-shirt to cover it. But it got me thinking… what other items could be repurposed to upholster a stool or chair.
Repurposed materials to Upholster a Stool
bath mat
hand woven rug
crocheted blanket
patchwork quilt
chunky sweater
flannel shirt
textured pillow sham
velvet skirt
Turkish towel
patterned curtain
What You Need:
Stool
Scissors
Staple gun
repurposed materials – like an old t-shirt
What You Do:
This is assuming that the stool already has batting. If not, hot glue thick batting in the shape of the seat to the stool. In addition, you can either remove the previous upholstery fabric or recover directly over the top. I usually reupholster directly over the top of any material.
First, center the fabric on the stool. Avoid any seams. Then, measure and cut the material to fit over the top of the stool. You can do this by laying the material onto the floor and placing the top of the stool on it. Then, pull the fabric over the edges and at least one inch over the bottom of the stool seat. For a circular stool, cut the fabric in a large circle.
Next, use a staple gun to staple each side of the fabric to the stool, pulling tight as you go. Begin with the four opposite corners. Keep the fabric pulled tight and always staple across from the previous staple.
Then, staple in between by pulling the fabric and folding it over. Cut off any excess fabric.
The more simple style has a modern feel to fit in with my daughters ever changing style. Plus, the stool now serves as an accent table in her reading nook.
I hope that you are encouraged to create something in your home with repurposed materials. If so, please save this to your DIY Pinterest board, or follow mine, here. And if you are looking for more home decor and DIY ideas, you can follow me on instagram at @cutertudor.
This week for 5 Way Wednesday, I am sharing 5 +1 different ways to style corbels in your home. Then, I will share where to buy corbels! I love using a variety of new, vintage & unpainted corbels for DIY’s for my home.
1. Use corbels in a coffee table vignette.
When styling a coffee table, you want to include a combination of seasonal greenery, books or a tall item to vary the height, and something that is personal or an interesting shape. In addition, it is important to use a variety of textures and materials like wood, glass, metal, textiles and natural elements.
Corbels work great for vignettes individually or in pairs. Specifically, they add texture and height.
2. Use corbels to build a desk.
One of my favorite DIY’s in our home is this built in desk made from two large wooden corbels. You can get all the instructions on the blog, here. This works great in small spaces like an entry room, too. Plus, this idea works similarly to DIY corbel shelves which is another favorite way to style corbels!
3. Use corbels as bookends.
This may be a ‘ no brainer’ since corbels look a lot like bookends, but it is a great way to style a shelf. However, have fun with this! The corbels can lay vertically or horizontally. In addition, you can turn books around so that they pages show instead of the spines for a more neutral look.
4. Use corbels to accent a door frame.
Corbels were originally made to hold heavy loads with added decoration, so it makes sense to install them in an open door frame albeit for the decoration. This works the same way you would install brackets.
5. Use corbels as a centerpiece.
Corbels are great as a centerpiece because they are tall and create a focal point in the center of the table. Use two corbels on a small or round table. However you can place 3-5 corbels down the center of a longer rectangle table. Then, add sprigs or orbs of greenery or candles to make it feel cozy.
6. Display corbels as architectural pieces.
Corbels can be displayed as architectural pieces on shelves or cabinets. No books required. For example, include them in vignettes, or on a shelf individually.
Where to buy corbels?
I found vintage chippy and unpainted corbels for DIY’s from The Findery in Waco, Texas. Plus, Hobby Lobby has a good selection of the metal brackets for doorways and ceramic corbels, which are great for vignettes but not hanging. The chippy white ones that I have pictured are from Magnolia Market! Lastly, I see lots of vintage and handmade corbels at antique stores and at the Antique Show in Roundtop, Texas.
Thank you for stopping by the blog to read 5 Ways to Style Corbels! If you love these styling tips, save the pic below to your Pinterest board, or check out more 5 Way Wednesday posts featuring a different product each week. Just search ‘5 way’ in the search bar.
Recently, I bought new linen bedding which inspired me to change out my curtains! Then, the rug, lol! Since I have always loved the natural look of cotton canvas, I wanted to try DIY drop cloth curtains. They are so easy to hang, and budget friendly. Today, I am sharing my best advice so you can make no sew drop cloth curtains, too!
How to Make No Sew Drop Cloth Curtains
Materials to Make No Sew Drop Cloth Curtains
Canvas Drop Cloth (1 6×9 panel per single window or 2 per large window)
Curtain Rod Kit with Brackets
Hanging Clips (7 per panel)
Household Tools – electric drill, measuring tape, iron or steamer
1. Measure the Windows.
First, measure your windows before you go shopping for materials to make these ‘no sew drop cloth curtains.’ This will help you determine how many drop cloth curtains are needed and which size to purchase. Keep in mind that drop cloth typically comes in 6×9 feet or 5×8 feet increments.
Consider the height of the window and preference on curtain length from floor to rod. Do you like the curtains to puddle a few inches near the floor or kiss the floor. Do you like the curtains rod to hang a few inches or a foot above the window trim?
Next, measure the width of the window. Typically, you want the curtain panel to be at least twice the width of the window. For example, my window is 3 feet wide. Therefore, I chose drop cloth that is 6 feet wide.
I suggest one 6×9 drop cloth for a single window (approximately 3 feet wide) and two panels for double windows. However, you may like a fuller look or the ability to separate two curtain panels on both sides of the windows. Therefore you could opt for two panels on a single window.
For myself, I like the coverage of one panel on the single window on either side of my bed. Specifically, I like to push the right side curtain to the right to open it, and the left window curtain to the left so it frames out the bed.
2. Steam or Iron the Drop Cloth Curtains.
Next, iron or steam the drop cloth curtains to reduce the folds in the fabric from packaging. Actually, if you choose to steam, you can do it after you hang the curtains! It’s all good!
3. Hang the hardware.
Using your drill, hang the curtain rod brackets according to your height preference. Typically, you hang curtains 2 – 6 inches above the window trim. However, I prefer to hang curtains halfway between the window and the ceiling to bring the eye up.
The top of my window trim is 7 feet. However, I hung the rod about a foot higher than the trim.
4. Attach the curtain rings to the Drop Cloth Curtains.
First, lay the drop cloth on the floor. Next, using your measurements, determine how much to fold the top of drop cloth curtains. For example, I hung the hardware 8 feet from the floor. Knowing the curtain panel is 9 feet tall allowed me to determine that I needed a 12 inch fold. You can decide if you want the fold to show in the front or back.
I used about 7 curtain rings per panel. Consequently, most packages of clips come in sets of 7 or 14. For a six foot wide panel, I laid the measuring tape across the folded drop cloth curtain. Then, I placed a curtain ring on the folded panel at both ends and every 12 inches.
If you like to use more curtain rings, just divide the width of the panel with how many rings that you want to use. For example, for a 6 foot or 72 inch panel divide by 10 rings. So place curtain rings every 7.2 inches.
5. Hang the Drop Cloth Curtains.
First, hold the outside ring in one hand. Then, allow the fabric to fall into 6 inches folds before grabbing the next ring. This will create a pleated look.
Lastly, slide the rings clipped to the drop cloth curtain onto the rod before placing onto the curtain brackets.
So Many Options with Drop Cloth Curtains:
Wash??? It is up to you if you want to wash your curtains before ironing. Washing will remove the smell and soften the material. However, I opted to only steam mine prior to hanging.
Hem??? Instead of leaving a fold over the curtain, you could hem the tops or bottoms with hot glue to adjust the length according to the height of your windows. The fold worked great for my style.
Bleach??? You can bleach some drop cloths to lighten in your washing machine or a large plastic tub outdoors. However, check packaging for details. I love the natural color because it matches my linen bedding.
Cut??? For narrow windows, you can cut the 6×9 panels in half (down the middle of 6 feet width to make two curtain panels). I liked the fullness of one 6 feet wide panel for 3 feet wide windows.
Blackout??? Most drop cloth is opaque, so there is no need to add blackout panels. I love that they allow the sun to shine through, but prevent anyone from seeing in at night. However, that’s up to you.
Where to Buy??? You can buy them everywhere from Amazon, Home Depot, Walmart, Lowe’s or most local hardware stores. Options from color and texture vary in each store. I prefer the drop cloth that is the same material on both sides, like these at Lowe’s, here. I say this because I saw some that had vinyl coating on one side.
Thank you for stopping by the Cuter Tudor Blog. Hopefully, you find these tips for DIY no sew drop cloth curtains to be helpful! Subscribe to the blog here for more home decor DIYS and inspiration!
Recently, I started sharing decor tips on my Instagram stories every Wednesday called ‘5 Way Wednesday.” Basically, I take one product ands style it five different ways. I think versatility gives value to an item. So, when you tire of using a piece of decor one way, you can style it differently in another space.
Joanna Gaines made the tobacco basket popular as wall decor. Similarly, I am sharing 5 ways to style a tobacco wall basket that has a pocket on the front for decor! You can find the basket at Pin It Co, here. Use code CUTER20 for 20% off purchases.
1. Potted Greenery
Keep it simple! Just add one or two pots of faux greenery to your tobacco wall basket. For instance, I like these burlap wrapped plants from Hobby Lobby. You can even store real herbs in the wall basket on your patio or porch!
2. Linens and Faux Stems
First, fold decorative dish towels in the kitchen or roll a few washcloths in the bathroom. Next, hang near the sink. This acts in place of a towel bar for small spaces. To add a fresh vibe, place 2-3 stems of greenery into the basket.
3. Books and Greenery
First, place 2-3 vintage, new or deconstructed books to the basket. Next, add a faux plant orb like this From Susie! This will look great mixed into a gallery wall in the family room. In addition, I would hang it above a nightstand in a kids room to hold their favorite bed time story books.
4. Plates and Florals
First, place seasonal florals into the tobacco wall basket. Next, layer in a few white plates or platters. You can add a pop of color or pattern to personalize the decor too. Specifically, this idea would look great in a breakfast or dining room.
5. Found Objects
This idea will allow you to display your collections of vintage finds and found objects. For example, use any architectural salvage, antiques or items that you have found in nature. For this basket, I placed a real birds nest in front of a chippy piece of architectural wood. Next, I tucked in a faux magnolia bloom.
Tobacco Wall Basket Challenge: Centerpiece
I thought it would be fun to challenge myself to think outside the box to decorate with a tobacco basket . Therefore, I came up with the idea to use it as a centerpiece on the table. Simply, turn the basket on its side to use it like a tray. Then, add greenery and a vase or collection of bottles with real or faux flowers. Specifically, I used a mini wreath to ensure that greenery was well placed.
Thank you for stopping by the Cuter Tudor Blog to learn more ways to decorate with a tobacco basket. If you have an idea for a product that I should style various ways, send me an email at amy@cutertudor.com. I will try my best to share it! Above all, if you like these ideas, check out my instagram stories on Wednesdays or please share it on facebook or Pinterest.
