Maria, from John's Journal (Home Tour)....

This Friday I'd like to share another home tour brought to you by the lovely Maria of John's Journal blog.  I noticed right away that she has the same West Elm ZIG ZAG carpet that I do, it's by far one of my faves! Also, do you notice the cool zebra print console table? It's a DIY project she did!  You can learn more about how she made it and where she purchased some of the items here. 

Thank you Maria for sharing your home with us. If you have a home you'd like to share here on Made By Girl, please email me and I'll let you know what I think.

images by maria

Enjoy your weekend!

Renovation....DIY can be a pain in the neck.

My DIY office renovation has been quite a challenge....& I know a lot of you liked the 'before' office space. However, with this current transformation, I am feeling much more inspired already.  Sometimes you just need a clean slate in order to keep creating beautiful things.  

Below are a few pics I took a few days ago.  I know it's a TEASE but my home office isn't quite done just yet.  We're having the most difficult time installing the curtain rod brackets.  You know, those darn things that are placed into the wall on each end of the window so the rod doesn't FALL!  What a pain in the neck! Be back with more soon....

wallpaper: graham & brown

wall paint color: 'popped corn' by BEHR

image: jen ramos

My office renovation still in progress....

My desk area is now all moved to another area in my office. (Below you'll see the after pic).  I have many more pics to come of my office renovation...so stay tuned!   I have to say, I'm really LOVING the NEW LOOK much better! Can't wait to show all of you.....we'll be working throughout the weekend on this DIY project! Enjoy your weekend everyone!

(in progress)

 images: jen ramos of made by girl

For more pics of how my office used to look go here.

DIY Framed Art Wall in 5 Steps...

1 - You may use various sizes of frames for this project, I prefer to stick with 2-3 different sizes. Mostly 5x7's , 8x10's & a few 11x14's. I prefer to mix & match, using white & gold. Feel free to do the same or use the same color. etc. To brighten things up, you can add a couple of bright colored frames as well. It all depends on the rest of the decor within your home. If you have some old frames lying around, but they aren't the colors you want for this project, then PAINT them! That's what I did with a few of these.

2 - Draw the layout on a piece of paper as well as whatever piece of furniture will be against that wall etc.. (In my case, I aligned the frames in my drawing with my dining table as my guide).


3 - Layout the frames on the floor or table top to get an idea of where you'll place the frames & how it will appear.

4 - Now for placement of the frames on the wall, begin with the top center & work your way out.

5 - Every so often, measure the distance between each frame. Try not to go too far down or your frames may end up behind your sofa, dining table etc. (in my case, my dining table) Do you notice how my art doesn't go lower then the height of my table top? Make sure it's all proportionate to the wall. If you aren't placing any items of furniture near that wall, then you may place the frames as low or high on the wall as you see fit.

Tip: Try to maintain continuity throughout the project.

*Above- my dining room table. For more pics of my home click here.