beach theme — archives

Today I’m sharing a fun project that was inspired by YouTube. I’ve seen countless tutorials for Diy chandeliers, both for indoor and outdoor use. But I kept seeing a common theme, which was bling. Now, I’m not a very “blingy” girl. So, while the projects I came across were beautiful, they weren’t quite my style. So, I came up with something a little more toned down and that would complement the outdoor décor I had already created.

Just about all the supplies I used were from Dollar Tree, except for the jute rope (that you could find at the dollar store) which I had on hand. In addition to the rope, I used a hanging planter (which I spray painted white), hot glue, shells, and my string lights (which I repurposed for this project).

Step 1:

secured the rope onto the inner ring of the plant hanger and looped it around 3 of the wire separations, creating a crisscross effect and secured the end with hot glue

I repeated this step 3 times

– I didn’t measure the rope, just eyeballed it

Step 2:

removed the decorative balls from the string lights and strung 3 of them onto a piece of rope, which I looped around the planter frame (in the open spaces between the rope detail) and secured with a knot.

- at this point I reinserted the lights into each ball

Step 3:

added decorative shells around the center ring, and secured with hot glue

- This covered up the knots from the rope holding the balls

Step 4:

moved the clips to the wire just above the inner ring, and shortened it so it would be less visible

– I also attached the string light battery packs to the wire

Here it is hanging from my patio umbrella.

And there you have it. I hope that description made sense! Let me know what you think. I hope this inspired you to get your creative juices flowing. I would love to see what you come up with! Thanks, and God Bless!

Living Simply,

Mindy ✿

I don’t know about you, but I love the beach! I love summer in general, but there’s something about laying out on the sand and watching the waves that is very soothing. Now we live in New England which means the ocean water is absolutely freezing and beaches are crowded. Even so our family tries to make at least one or two trips a year. So, since we don’t go as often as I’d like, I thought I would bring the beach to us with beach themed décor.

I will be sharing two diy projects that will be on our backyard patio table. Now if I could only get the yard cleaned up…sigh.

For the first project I used a glass jar I found for $5 at the Target dollar spot. Along with some decorative items from Dollar Tree, and a few things I had laying around the house.

Step 1: measured and cut jute rope to the length I wanted the handle to hang. Then twisted in half and attached (using hot glue) a nut, which I spray painted with metallic paint.

Step 2: attached a key ring (also spray painted) to each nut using hot glue.

Step 3: wrapped jut rope around neck of the jar, while stringing on the key rings to the second layer. Attached with hot glue.

Step 4: attached a votive candle holder to the bottom of the jar with hot glue. This was so I would be able to remove the battery-operated candle.

Step 5: filled the jar with sand and shells from the Dollar Tree.

For project number two, I thought I would make use of this raised garden bed I purchased 2 summers ago with the intent on starting a garden. There is no garden to speak of. So, I made what I’m calling faux pallet art.

Step 1: took the garden bed apart and cut the wood pieces to fit this quote art I found at Dollar Tree.

Step 2: attached the cut pieces to create a pallet.

Step 3: used modpodge (the outdoor formula) to adhere the art to the wood. I ended up cutting the paper into strips to give it the wood pallet look. I love how it looks imperfect.

Step 4: attached frame support from the back of a previously used frame.

And there you have it. Two simple projects that cost less than $20. I hope this inspires you to create something that reminds you of a soothing experience. Until next time, thanks and God Bless!