You don't have to be a fisherman or a sailor to appreciate the many uses of rope. This texturally beautiful and durable line is the perfect medium for dozens of DIY projects. Rope accents and furniture bring a more rustic and charming feel to your home. Fortunately, it is both inexpensive and easy to work with. Below are just a handful of the many great uses for rope at home.


Rope bowls

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Photo courtesy of Design*Sponge
These nesting bowls make the perfect addition to any coffee table or dresser. Here's what you need: rope, bowls for molds, a high temperature glue gun, and clear sealant spray paint. Experiment with thickness, colors, and shapes, and coil your way to a great rope bowl. Click here for a tutorial.

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Photo Courtesy of Centsational Girl
This kitchen essential has been charmed up with the use of sisal rope. Again, the materials are simple: 50 to 75 feet of sisal rope (1/4 inch pictured here), a metal basket with handles, and a hot glue gun. In less than an hour you can glue your way to a ropey-fabulous bowl, perfect for the kitchen or any other room in the house. Click here for a tutorial.


Rope Frames

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Photo courtesy of Heidi Claire
Coil rope around a mirror to add some character. Here's what you need: an unframed mirror of any shape, rope, cardboard, duct tape, twine, and a hot glue gun. You will use the cardboard as a mock frame to create the shape of your rope frame. After your frame is complete and tied with twine, you will glue the frame to the mirror's surface. Click here for a more detailed tutorial.

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Photo courtesy of me and my very own living room
Create your very own rope picture frame with an old frame, some rope, a hot glue gun, and a picture of course! You could also use this for artwork.

rope lamps

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Photo courtesy of The Avarice
We have covered DIY lighting before, but it never ceases to amaze me how many things can be painted or glued onto a lamp to make it DIY-incredible. This lamp lamp went from shabby to fabulous with a few coils of rope. The usual suspects are needed to create this polished look: rope and a glue gun. You will also need a lamp and a shade (white pictured here). Click here for a tutorial.

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Photo courtesy of Design*Sponge
This planter basket pendant lamp is inexpensive and can add a warm and textured look to any room. You will need rope, a planter basket, a pendant lamp kit (available at your local hardware store), a single round outlet cover plate, white spray paint, and of course, a hot glue gun! Click here for a tutorial. 



Now that you know how to wrap your way to rope fabulousness, its time to pick up that hot glue gun and get to coiling!
 
 
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Photo courtesy of Blue Lace House
Is your home missing something? Is your decor lackluster and craving a little "upmh"?  Adding plants to your home can brighten up a space and add that vitality your home so desperately seeks. Succulents are a great addition to any home or garden. These plants, which are part of the cacti family, not only look great and unique, but they are easy to maintain too. If you don't have the time, energy, or space for a lush floral garden then succulents are perfect for you! With an amazing mix of textures, colors, and shapes, these plants are sure to add some more character to your home. Here are a few delightful ideas. Enjoy! 


1. Use everyday household cups, pans, or dishes to contain these beauties. You just need a container, succulents, dirt, rocks, and an imagination!

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Photo courtesy of Epheriell Designs
To create this darling teacup garden start by selecting your preferred style of teacups, whether it be vintage mismatch or classic solid colors. Next, go to your local nursery for some unique, small succulents. Make sure that the succulents are small enough to fit in the teacups. Plant the succulents in the teacups with the cactus potting soil first and then finish off the top with some decorative pebbles. You can also use this method for pretty much any type of cup, pan, mason jar, or bowl. 

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Photo courtesy of The Veda House
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Photo courtesy of More Design Please


2. Get down with your crafty self and create some DIY succulent planters.


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Photo courtesy of Craftberry Bush
This balancing act of a book end is held together with epoxy and plastic cups. The project is simple and easy. Click here for a tutorial.

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Photo courtesy of Far Out Flora
You might never guess where the idea for this outdoor DIY succulent table stemmed from. Pallets. That's right, pallets. The people of Far Out Flora took an old discarded pallet and reused some of the planks to fashion this incredibly unique built-in succulent planter table. Click here for the tutorial.

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Photo courtesy of Shelterness
This vertical hanging succulent garden is a work of art! Find yourself a vintage frame and get ready to create your very own succulent masterpiece. All you need is the frame, cactus potting soil, moss, chicken wire, plywood, and a generous helping of succulent clippings. Click here for the tutorial.


3. Create your own terrarium. Hang it from the ceiling or use it as a centerpiece on a coffee table or dining table.

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Photo courtesy of Kaboodle
To create this hanging terrarium all you need is a glass bubble, potting soil, a succulent of your choice, and decorative rocks. These glass bubbles are available for purchase at CB2 and West Elm. You can even create a rustic look by hanging these terrariums with twine. For a little less fuss, forget the soil and rocks and just use succulent clippings. These will last a while if you water them just a little bit once per week. 
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Photo courtesy of West Elm

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Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart
These terrariums are simple, cheap, and easy. You can even use a fishbowl! Other glass bowls with unique shapes are available for purchase at you local nursery. If you are lucky, you may be able to find some unique glass at your local thrift store.
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Photo courtesy of Birdhouse Family
 
 
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Photo courtesy of Inhabitat
Pendant lamps, chandeliers, and shades, Oh My! DIY lighting may seem like a scary and monstrous task, but with a little courage and creativity, even you can conquer your fears. Whether it is fixing up a previous fixture or creating a whole new lamp from recycled materials, DIY lighting has become a fun and relatively simple way to add personality to your home. Here are a few splendid ideas. Enjoy.


1. Brighten up your paper pendant lamp with some more paper. That's right, more paper!
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Photo courtesy of Re-Nest
To create this gorgeous jellyfish-esque lamp, cut "petals" of wax paper into various lengths and use tape to secure each piece. Click here for a tutorial.

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Photo courtesy of Kara Paslay Designs
Keep your head in or near the clouds with this cloud-like pendant lamp. All you need is about 1 million coffee filters (well more like 500) and a glue gun. Click here for a tutorial from Kara Paslay Designs.


2. Use a canvas and christmas lights to create a beautiful glittering lightscape.


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Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy
This DIY lightscape is gorgeous and inexpensive to boot! All you need is a canvas, acrylic paint, christmas lights (preferably with a white cord), and craft glue. Below are 4 easy steps to achieve this look.
  • Paint a sretched canvas from an art-supply store in your desired color.
  • Plot out your design in pencil on the back, keeping dots a half-inch apart.
  • Gently press an awl, a long pointed spike, through each dot in your design to make a hole slightly smaller than the diameter of the bulb.
  • Press a bulb into each hole; secure each with craft clue. 
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Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy


3. Use glass decanters, vases, or bottles to invent a unique and finished look for your pendant chandelier or lamp base. 

 
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Photo courtesy of HD Inspirations
Originally thought up by well known interior designer Lee Broom, these crystal decanter lights are just a glass cut away from looking fabulous in your home. Don't have any crystal? You can most likely scavenge some from your parents' or grandparents' homes, or search your local thrift store. If you don't have a tool to cut glass, I recommend buying or renting a wet tile saw from your local home improvement store. This method actually sands the edge of the glass while you cut so there are no sharp, dangerous edges. Click here for a tutorial on how to cut glass using this method. You can even spray paint the decanters if your heart so desires (as shown below).
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Photo courtesy of HD Inspirations

Create a colorful outdoor pendant lamp by cutting the bottom of the bottle off with the glass cutting method mentioned above. Wire it with a socket, wire, long cord, and plug that you can hang as a swag lamp. 
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Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy

Create a one-of-a-kind lamp by using glass vases or bottles as a base. To make this magic happen, use a drill (with a glass drill bit) and a bottle lamp kit, that can be purchased at your local home improvement store. Click here for a tutorial.
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Photo courtesy of Miss Green Thumb's Etsy Shop

You can choose to leave the glass as is, or if you are in the need of some color use this tinting method or some spray paint to stain the glass lamp base.
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Photo courtesy of Home Design Find



Do you have any more fun DIY lighting ideas or interesting DIY lighting experiences? If so, do share by commenting below. 
 
 
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Is your home feeling a little drab or dull? Is your decor craving a little sumthin' sumthin'? Don't worry, this is nothing a little can of spray paint can't cure. Summer is here, so now is the perfect time to grab a can and head outside to add some color and character to your home. Here are a few quick and inexpensive spray painting ideas for your home. Enjoy.


1. Spray paint upholstered furniture that is drab or dull.

Thats right, you can actually spray paint upholstered furniture with upholstery spray paint.  Below is a before/after example of a stool that was outdated and needed a new look.

 After                   Before
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Photo courtesy of Little Green Notebook

Choose a fun color to spray paint a hand-me-down, Craigslist find, or sidewalk discovery. Add a silver or gold nail trim yourself by simply using a hammer and nail trim head from your local hardware store. Click here to see the before picture of this incredible wingback.
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Photo courtesy of Hyphen Interiors

2. Spray paint plates from the cupboard or goodwill to create a great wall decoration.


Spray paint mismatched plates with different colors to create beautiful and unique wall art.
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Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy

Use artistic shapes to make one-of-a-kind plates to display on your wall. All you need is foil, spray paint, and stencil shapes–either handmade or from your local art store. Click here for a tutorial.
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Photo courtesy of Bloesem Living


3. Ever wonder what to do with those sad looking cabinet doors or frames laying on the sidewalk? Here is a great way to re-use frames and cabinet doors for your jewelry storage needs. All you need to do is add a little spray paint.

Spray paint a frame of your choice and add a screen, some chicken wire, lace, or pieces of string to the back of the frame using staples or push pins. There are so many different styles for this DIY earring holder. Now you have to ask yourself, are you a lace or chicken wire kind of gal?
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Photo courtesy of Restored Style
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Photo courtesy of Four Harp Designs

Spray paint your frame and screw in some hooks to make a decorative yet functional necklace holder. 
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Photo courtesy of U Create Crafts

If you are lucky enough to discover something with this much potential on the sidewalk, don't let anyone talk you out of grabbing it and running home to do a little DIY crafting! Make sure the surface is clean before you spray paint the wicker cabinet doors. Mount the cabinet doors to the wall using pre-existing mounts or picture hangers on the back of each door.  
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Photo courtesy of me and my own bedroom


4. Spray lamp bases and/or shades to liven up your living space.

Sometimes all a lamp needs is new shade...and maybe a coat of spray paint on the base. Check out this before and after to see how this lamp went from bleak to chic.
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Before....
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After
Photos courtesy of The Stir

Holy Amazing Vintage Lamp Makeover! Both the base and shade were spray painted to revamp this lamp. Click here to see the before picture and a tutorial on spray painting lamp shades.
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Photo courtesy of Apartment Therapy
 
 
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In today's day and age mason jars are no longer just hoarded by your grandmother to make preserves or jar jams, jellies, and pickles. These once common household items are breaking their way into home decor both as a means of function and decoration. Some of these vintage jars, specifically the aqua blue ones, can be worth quite the pretty penny! Here's a few unique and inexpensive ways use these jars in your home.


1. Pair mason jars with your favorite plants. You can even spray paint them for colorful one-of-a-kind pots.

Simple and easy. Just use cactus potting mix and plant one of your favorite succulents. You can even use twine or ribbon to tie around the rim of the jar.
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Photo courtesy of A Simply Klassic Home

Make a statement by spray painting a jar white and planting a unique succulent.
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Photo courtesy of Kaboodle

Missing some color in your life? Spray paint different sized mason jars and plant some lavender or some allysum (pictured here) in potting soil mix.
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Photo courtesy of The CSI Project


2. Add a little character to your bathroom or kitchen by using mason jars as soap and lotion dispensers.


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Photo courtesy of Country Living

To make your own mason jar soap and lotion dispensers simply drill a hole in the center of the lid a half an inch wide to fit the width of the pump. Remember to start with the smaller drill bits so you don't make the opening too big. I find drilling fun/exciting/scary but if you don't have one, or don't feel the need to drill, you can purchase your own lids with the soap dispenser already installed at Post Road Vintage's Etsy Shop.
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Photo courtesy of At Home America


3. Use mason jars to add personality and functionality to your wall storage. 

Use jars to organize your crafting supplies, or various other hobby essentials. Create labels by cutting different shapes of paper and using twine to tie them around the neck of the jar. If you don't have enough aqua blue jars use this method to stain the jars. 
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Photo courtesy of 'I Do' it Yourself

Personalize your wall shelves by using mason jars as book ends or succulent vases. 
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Photo courtesy of me and my own bedroom

Use old trinkets or collectables, such as buttons to put inside the jar to create a personalized bookend. 
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Photo courtesy of me and my own bedroom


4. Build your own wall storage using mason jars to store crafty goodness, bathroom essentials, or whatever your heart desires.

You can use hose clamps to mount jars to a piece of wood and use it to store all sorts of things.  Office supplies above your desk, paintbrushes and thread above your craft table, cotton balls and q-tips in your bathroom, or wooden spoons in the kitchen.  The possibilities are endless!
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Photo courtesy of Be Different Act Normal

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Photo courtesy of Liz Marie Blog
5. Love creative DIY lighting? Love mason jars? It might just be a marriage made in heaven.

This task is a DIY lover's dream. Every step is carefully laid out by Kara Paslay here. But... if you don't have the time or resources you can purchase jar chandeliers similar to this one from Pottery Barn and BootsNGuns' Etsy Shop.
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Photo courtesy of Kara Paslay Designs

Make your very own mason jar pendant with this tutorial from Senseless Sophistication.
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Photo courtesy of Senseless Sophistication

Create hanging lanterns the good old-fashioned way with jars, tea lights, and some wire. This method is also great for hangings flowers on your porch, in your backyard, or in your home.
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Photo courtesy of say for me love
 
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    About Me

    A curriculum writer by day...I dig art, interior design, fashion, and the world around me. 

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