Hello all, happy Sunday!  I’ve decided to bring this series back twice a month to showcase all the fabulousness going on out there in the blogosphere!  I enjoyed the break, but there’s nothing I love more than a great DIY project or a fantastic before and after, so let’s kick of the first BOTB of the year with a few favorites.  Amanda returns, teaming up with me to share a few of her favorite links too…

If a kitchen makeover is on your New Year’s Resolutions list, then be sure to read Melissa’s tutorial how to paint kitchen cabinets. See how she refinished hers at 320 Sycamore.

Speaking of kitchen renovations, we’re loving the charcoal cross section fabric on Jen’s DIY pendant lights. Check out the full post at Tatertots and Jello.

When Belva June emailed me a few pictures a couple weeks ago, I shared this on Facebook, but she finally wrote up a post about her Billys to Built-Ins so I had to share it here too!  She adds a space for a TV and some fresh pops of yellow, bravo girl!

Don’t miss this fabulous diamond wall treatment tutorial by Make Them Wonder, what a great way to add three dimensional interest to your wall! (via Design*Sponge).

We love Lindsay’s color choices on her smart and stylish layered frame gallery wall.

Brrrr, baby it’s cold outside!  How about making some homemade hand warmers from Vanessa at V & Co.  Love this simple idea!  

I love absolutely everything about this gold clay bowl project by Wit & Delight, imagine recreating your own in all sorts of colors!

Such great projects to inspire, hope you enjoyed this week’s roundup! 

And thanks so much to Amanda for her picks too! You can visit with Amanda at her blog Serenity Now.

That’s all folks, have a great Sunday!

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I notice the architectural details of homes everywhere I go, I just can’t stop, it’s an obsession of mine.  My mister has grown accustomed to me shouting “Stop the car! Check out that house!”  followed up by “I neeeeed to take a picture!”.  This happens a lot when we take a road trip or travel, we drive around the neighborhoods to get a feel for the real estate in the region. I love so many styles from Colonial to Craftsman and it’s so hard to commit to just one favorite.  Are any of you the same?  Do you go pretend house hunting too?

Anyway, I thought it would be fun this weekend to find out what style of home is your favorite. Is is a country farmhouse that makes you swoon, or a modern contemporary structure that makes you go ga ga?  Here’s a look at ten popular styles of residential architecture in America, and then you can vote for your favorite at the end! 

1.  Craftsman Bungalow:   Triangular low pitched roofs and mixed materials of brick, wood, and stone make this style of home one of the most popular in the country.  Craftsman bungalows have recessed covered porches with tapered square columns, overhanging eaves, decorative brackets, and exposed rafters.    

images: river front builders; la times

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Hey all, I’m so excited to show you the beadboard wallpaper in our powder room!  I’ve been thinking about doing this for a long time, especially after reading Rhoda’s tutorial, and at last I got around to it the other day. This really is such a great solution for those who want to add the classic look of beadboard wainscoting to a bathroom but avoid the expense of real panels (and the tricky cuts around the plumbing).

This project is step one in the little makeover going on in here, and I worked up a ‘how to’ with the steps I followed.

I’m took a lot of these step-by-step pictures with my phone (sorry for the quality) but you’ll get the idea!  First, here’s your supply list: primer* for walls; beadboard wallpaper, chair rail trim, sponge, measuring tape, bucket, level, scissors, roller, brad nails and hammer (or brad nailer), paint color of choice, miter saw for chair rail trim.

*I primed the walls with water based Zinsser 1-2-3 Plus where I was installing the wallpaper because the before paint was semi-gloss and I needed that paste to stick… I believe the wallpaper is recommended for primed walls as I recall from the instructions inside (which I threw out of course before I sat down to write this today…gah.)  If you have flat paint on your walls, you probably don’t need primer.

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A new blogger Abby wrote to me last week asking how I find stuff to write about everyday and I had to really think about it. I don’t often suffer from writer’s block but I used to in the beginning. These days, it just sorta comes to me at night which is why I keep a notebook by my bed of thoughts and ideas. I also get inspired from a lot of what I read online.

Writer’s block is a real issue that bloggers encounter at some point. It can be mild or it can be crippling.  It’s that feeling of not knowing what to say, what to write, what to put out there and to be frank I didn’t really know how to answer Abby’s question.

But then it came to me last night. How about 50 blog posts from writers that I’ve bookmarked or remembered from the past year. All of these posts are great because they’re personal and/or offer a takeaway. So here you go Abby, fifty great examples of what to write about when you can’t think of anything at all.

1.  Answer a reader’s question (like Kristi did).

2.  Rediscover your home (like Courtney).

3.  Share your vacation photos (love Stefanie’s).

4.  Make a funny observation (like Steph).

5.  Share a great bargain (like Emily).

6.  Teach readers something technical you know all about (like Amy).

7.  Start a clever series.

8.  Try something cool and wacky. (like Ree)

9.  Share some pretty pictures.

10.  Talk about a device that makes your world complete (like Holly).

via In the Fun Lane

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