DIY: Cinder Block Palace

So, I promised that I would provide pictures of how we decorated our new two bedroom apartment. After cleaning and cleaning before we left on vacation, the thought occurred to me that I should take some pictures, but I simply had too much to do. As a result, I have decided to display the pictures of our cute little apartment in installments. You see, I simply will never have everything clean all at once again I don't think, at least not for a great while, so I am just going to post pictures one room at a time as they get clean. This is our front room/kitchen. I love this room so so so much.

This picture was the theme for the whole room. It is just above the sink which you did not get to see because my dishes weren't done. However, if you cannot tell what it is, I will tell you. The picture is by one of my favorite artists Charley Harper. This is called "The Last Sunflower Seed." This depicts a pile of cardinal birds all trying to get to a sunflower seed but the one on the very far right has made out with the loot.

So this is probably my proudest feature of the room. I got all the frames for those pictures for $1.87 at Target. They are super cute and I love the character they add to the room. The bench is actually just a bunch of 15inch by 15 inch by 15 inch ottomans that I got for $8.00 a piece at Target. Then I covered them with material. The solid red is a bed sheet, the top cushion part is covered in my curtain fabric from our kitchen window in our old apartment. I love them. I also sewed the pillows with the large design. When I was in Paris, I worked with an older couple from Hawaii. I danced in a Hula and was given a strip of fabric for my wrap around skirt. It had three large square panels in it. Those panels became these pillows on the bench and couch.

I made this little scrabble art at the Boys and Girls club. It is made out of an old scrabble game. I love that it gives a cute personal touch to our shelf.

Parker and I are not big TV watchers, and I disliked that it usually takes up so much room, so I have stowed it away under that bookshelf behind our front door. Should we want to watch, we can roll it out into the middle of the floor and plug it in, but then we can roll it back when we are done with it.

This wall is not finished for me quite yet...but I have not decided just what I want to do with it. The mirror was a dumpster find. It is beautiful with beveled edges, I just painted it and presto! It went great with our room.

The curtains are a microfiber fabric and were very inexpensive, but my sister-in-law helped me sew them...as in, she sewed them for me. She was such a big help. I am so grateful for her!

Since I used Oops paint for the turquoise wall color, I only had to spend money on the white and red paint. In total, I think I probably spent around $150.00 to remake the whole room, perhaps a bit more, but I can't tell what a difference it has made for the peace I find in coming home. While I still think there are some finishing touches to be had, I like where our room is at. I can't seem to keep it clean all the time, but I am doing my best. Please stop by sometime and see it...but maybe call first, so I can make sure it is tidy :-)