New Series: BOTB

By Kate Riley April 3, 2011

Greetings and happy weekend!  I am trying out a fun new weekend series called “Best of the Blogosphere” or “BOTB” for short.  I better be careful not to mistype that ‘T’ !  This series will be a roundup of the best of home improvement and decorating that we see in blog land. 

When I say ‘we’ I mean I’m in cahoots with some new Contributive Writers recently brought on board.  Together with my accomplices, we will be scouring the internet, looking for the most inspiring and original creations!  We live for it, we love it, we can’t get enough of it.  And we will be bringing it to you!  Let’s kick if off shall we?

Have a look at these stylish yet functional built-in spice shelves over at Tidbits from the Tremaynes.  With some help from her handy dad, Mandi fashioned all the details, and then completes the look with her custom labeled spice jars.  Now we’re ready to fire up the power tools and take advantage of some space in the walls! 

spice shelves tremains

 

We’re loving this simple sew tutorial for pillow shams over at Jilly & Mia

diy pillow sham

 

These garden labels designed by Cathe at Just Something I Made were featured in Country Living, and now you too can download them for your own garden shed or potting bench.

cl labels jsim

 

This laundry room sign over at Pure + Lovely just cracks us up.  No words, just giggles.

too sexy pureandlovely

 

You’ll find an affordable alternative to carpet with the painted subfloors over at Fieldstone Hill.  Along with helpful tips, Darlene offers photos of the step by step process to convert the flooring in her boys’ room, including her advice to indulge in a martini when the work is complete.  We like that reward.  A lot. 

painted subfloors

 

Gorgeous modern stencils are everywhere, and why not on the kitchen floor?   Kelly shows us how over at Back to Domestics

domestics after

 

The instructions for this lemon wreath via The Adventures of Ordy and Joon are easy to follow, and Joon spent far less than the $200 lookalikes she discovered online.  The colorful, cheery lemons are a perfect transition from spring to summer.

lemon wreath ordy and joon

 

Make the prettiest crepe paper flowers with Today’s Fabulous Finds.  These are the perfect addition to any birthday present or to embellish any package, plus we can see them used in all sorts of other decorative ways. 

crepe paper flowers  todays fabulous finds

 

A dated living room got a little facelift; starting with a serene color palette and reupholstered vintage chairs over at Modern Jane.  Think Jane would mind if we all stopped by unannounced just to hang out in this freshened space?

modern jane living room

 

Lynda at Focal Point paired fabric samples with gold painted cardstock to create a framed fabric focal point for her dining room.  Loving this affordable and stylish art!

fabric wall art

 

If you want to do some decluttering along with your spring cleaning, be sure to stop by Clover Lane and read Sarah’s advice on kids’ room purges.

kid decluttering clover lane

 

Finally, Abby’s recollection of this whimsical outdoor dinner party at The Storywood brings to mind those moments in life where we make our very best memories.  It doesn’t get much better than this. 

outdoor dinner party

 

My associates and I will be back soon showcasing even more “best of the blogosphere”.  Meet one of the newest Contributive Writers, Amanda from Serenity Now:  She and I put this list together for you, so give her a virtual high five!

amanda tag

There will be new articles from time to time from other contributors.  If you have a unique project or helpful post, and you would like it to be considered for this weekend series, please send your projects to [email protected]

Happy home improvement!

 

 

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40 comments

  1. Truly inspiring!! I can only imagine how long it took to stencil that kitchen floor!! I am hopping over to check out some of these fabulous blogs and all the hard work that went into them…it looks like my Sunday WILL be spent drooling on my keyboard!

  2. Oh I love Amanda, and she always finds the most interesting articles and blogs. And her writing skills are unbelievable. I don’t know how she does it with two little girls at home, but she does! I can’t wait to check out that outdoor diner party, it looks so inviting.

  3. Great idea, ladies! I’m loving that I can check out one spot to find the best ideas. Smart thinkin’!
    CAS

  4. I loved the idea. I found your blog last week and since then ” I just can’t get enough!” I’ll definitely try the paper flower. Have a wonderful Sunday!!!

  5. Oh, such pretty things. I love having you do all the work and I just get to sit here and read about the best of the best!

  6. What a great idea. I thank you for doing all the browsing for me and saving me the time and computer headache!

  7. Oh ma gosh, thanks so much for the shout out! I was quite shocked to see this pop up on google reader this morning! Made my day!

  8. Thank you SO much for the linky love. I must toot your horn and say, everyone knows how wonderful Centsational girl is :), and so I am thrilled to be on your list! Fieldstone Hill is a budding dream of mine, so I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your kind words.
    Love BOTB. Your other links are wonderful as well, I am looking forward to checking them out.
    you made me giggle out loud with the martini reference. love your style, girl!
    -{darlene}
    fieldstonehilldesign.com

  9. What a GREAT idea! And I absolutely LOVE your selections for this week. AND… while I LOVE them all, my favorites are the Sexy Laundry Room sign, the painted subfloors, the spice rack, the stenciled kitchen floors, and the lovely outdoor dinner party!!!

    Way to go! Can’t wait to see more!

  10. Just saw my highest referral track back on my blog and had no idea you had put this up, thank you SO SO SO Much for featuring me AND for the extra views! So flattered!

  11. THANK YOU so very much Kate for not only including me in part of this BOTB line-up, but your new series kick-off! Woo-Hoo!! XO Thank you!! SO many great ideas and inspirations out there in blogland (yours especially). This is a wonderful way to showcase them. YOU ROCK!!

    :D Lynda

  12. This is a great list, Amanda will do a wonderful job as a contributing writer. :) Thanks so much for including my crepe paper flowers in your features!

  13. Just saw that I was getting traffic from your site and wanted to say THANKS! I love those stenciled floors…and I think BOTB is a great idea :)

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