Thrifty Dining Room Update

Our new apartment is awesome.  It has lots of vintage charm, beautiful architectural details, and it's spacious (and yes, the dining room even came with that awesome chandelier!).  We are loving finding the perfect spots for all of our furniture and art, but still have a few areas that are looking a little sparse.  On a med school student's budget, we've had to resort to Ikea, thriftiness, and lots of DIY-ing to get our place looking the way we want it.

This weekend, we gave our dining room a little makeover with some inexpensive DIY wall art. The problem with our dining room is that it's huge with lots of wall space.  We hung a large mirror at one end of the room, but still had a huge expanse of wall space that needed something (or some things) big.  We have some large pieces of art, but already hung them elsewhere in our apartment.  

We didn't want to spend money on more art or frames, so we tried this simple DIY that we found on Little Green Notebook: Huge prints for only $4.  Jenny Komenda has amazing ideas, and I love her style!  I was so excited to finally have the chance to try one of her projects.

How to make it happen:

1. Find some photos.  
2. Make them black and white.  
3. Save them on a flash drive and print them as large format architectural prints at FedEx Kinkos (around $4 each).  (You can call or check out the website before you go for info on sizing and how to save your files.  We saved them as grayscale images and converted them to PDFs.) 
4. Buy some large pieces of foam core. (We found huge pieces at Dollar Tree.)
5. You will probably need to cut the foam core to the size of your images.  Our photos ended up being 20"x26" and the foam core was 20"x28."  Use an exacto knife and a straight edge. 
6. You can paint the sides of the foam core first (I painted ours peach).  
7. After we cut the board and painted the sides, we trimmed the white borders off the photos (the easiest thing to do is to trim them using the large paper cutters at Kinkos after you have your photos printed).
8. Use double stick tape to mount your photos to the foam core.  So easy.  
9. Use 3M sticky velcro picture hangers to attach the foam core mounted photos to the wall.  

This was seriously so cheap and so easy! The entire project cost around $30, and we love the way that it brought some life to our dining room!

We have so many amazing photos from our adventures in the Caribbean over the past few years, and we were so excited to find a great way to put some of them on display.  I am pretty proud of the fact that we took all of these photos ourselves! 

1. Kaieteur Falls, Guyana, South America
2. Valley of Desolation, Dominica, West Indies
3. Snake Steps, Dominica, West Indies
4. Aba Wavine, Dominica, West Indies

*Advice for the Kinko's printing part:  

Print one image first to make sure it looks good. The photos came out really dark and streaky the first time (I think the printer needed new ink?). The guy who was helping me was really nice and lightened the photos and printed them on the extra large paper, which got rid of the streaks on the edges. I think he was supposed to charge me $7/each for the larger paper, but he was nice and didn't). Asking the guy if he could lighten the images and get rid of the streaks made such a difference, so definitely print one copy first to see what you think, and ask if they can help you make any adjustments if you aren't happy with the first print. This made all the difference! 

Also, these prints are not the highest quality and the paper is thin copy paper (not photo paper), but it is a great option if you want something inexpensive and dramatic. All this being said, we really do love how they turned out!

Font used: Amatic | Typekeys 
Arrow Photoshop Brushes from Creature Comforts
Inspiration for this project from Little Green Notebook

Images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W

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Making it happen: an Etsy shop!

I've decided that it's time to open my own Etsy shop!  Opening my own shop and selling more of my work is something that I've wanted to do for a while now, but I've just never made it happen. I've always been too busy, too tired, or just lacking motivation.  Now that we've moved to Chicago, however, I've found myself with more time, motivation, and room to paint and create.  I've been blogging, drawing, painting, decorating, and just being creative, and I'm loving it!  

I've gotten some amazing encouragement from friends after posting photos of some of my paintings here on the blog, on Facebook, and on Instagram.  So, I've decided that it's time to make it happen.  I'm going to continue working over the next few weeks to create some more pieces and to get everything set up, but my own Etsy shop is definitely in the works.  

I'll keep you posted on the details!  Thank you for all the love and encouragement! 

Fonts & Brushes used: 
Pea Roxygirl from Kevin & Amanda
Arvil by Ben Dalyrimple from Lost Type Co-op
Arrow Brushes from Creature Comforts

Art and design by Clare Wilkinson.

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Perfect little plants

As you may already know, we love Trader Joe's around here.  One of my favorite treats to buy at TJ's (besides anything covered in chocolate) is fresh flowers (I'm currently loving their tulips and  eucalyptus!).  I was so excited to discover these pretty, potted succulents at Trader Joe's last weekend.  I picked up three of them to sit in the windowsill in our home office.  

We've been wanting to add a few plants to our new apartment, but have been intimidated and indecisive about what to get, where to put them, and how to care for them.  These succulents are perfect, because they're low maintainance, but still have lots of personality (just the way we like it).  

I'm not sure what I like better, the funky plants or their fun, geometric pots! 

Font used: Sanserifing

Images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W.

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Job hunting & creating

This week, I'm laying low and hunkering down on my job search here in Chicago.  I've updated my resume, searched, and started filling out applications and writing cover letters.  I'm looking for something that's either creative, non-profit, or in the education field, but am pretty open to doing anything that what would be a good fit for me.  In the meantime I'm getting creative and trying to supplement our income with some freelance art and writing projects.

I'm loving the inspiring words on my current desktop wallpaper and am hoping that this simple nudge of encouragement to "make it happen" will help keep me motivated.  

Any job hunting advice for me?  Or better yet, a job?  All advice and encouragement is welcomed! 

Images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W
Desktop wallpaper from breanna rose

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My painting + Joy's Salon Wall

What a fun treat to check out Frock Files this week and find a beautiful salon-style gallery wall (and awesome tutorial) that included one of my paintings (top left).

What a striking room and wall - it all looks gorgeous! I love that most of the pieces that Joy hung have a special significance - pieces from friends from different walks of like, or collected on trips to favorite and sentimental places.  

For me, the art that we hang and collect is much the same way - it all has a story, and is tied to a place or memory.  I'll have to share an "art walk" around our apartment sometime to show you some of our favorite pieces and the stories that go with them. 

Do you have a gallery wall?  I've always wanted one, and have a random assortment of photos and small paintings that we haven't been able to find the perfect homes for.  They are currently living in boxes and waiting for frames... but I think that at some point, a gallery wall is in their future! 

Photo by Joy Uyeno - Frock Files

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Make 'em: Ikat Knobs

I always swoon over the gorgeous knobs and drawer pulls from Anthropologie, but at up $10 a pop, they can quickly become an expensive, little update.  We recently acquired a cabinet for our TV on craigslist, and I wanted an inexpensive way to give it a fresh look that didn't require purchasing knobs that cost nearly as much as the cabinet itself.  

My solution? DIY ikat knobs made with wooden knobs that cost less than a dollar each and some bright paint.

Hand-painted Ikat Knobs

Materials:

• unfinished wooden cabinet knobs
• scrap paper
• pen or pencil
• paint (I used leftover house paint samples from Lowes)
• a small, thin, pointy ended paint brush (for the details)
• a larger paint brush (to paint the background)
• polyurethane 
• cup of water and a paper towel (to clean your brush)

Method: 

a: champagne culture // b: madeline weinrib // c: shumacher // d: greenwithglamor

(a lighter color is better to begin with)

I found that the best way to achieve the ikat squiggly look was to paint diagonal line-like strokes extending across the width of each diamond section, filling in the diamond shape one brush stroke at a time.  

As you begin adding colors the paint may be transparent, so you will probably need to do a few coats.  I painted my design one color and one coat at a time.  (First all the teal, then all the yellow, then all the coral.)  I allowed each coat to dry completely and then went back in and touched up my top coats (just the yellow and coral).  During the touch ups you can try to better define the ikat-look with your short, diagonal brush strokes. 

Allow your knobs to dry overnight before coating them with a thin layer of polyurethane (apply according to the instructions on your can of poly).

Let me know if you make these, I'd love to see how they turn out!  Not into crafting, but want some hand painted knobs? Send me an email, I'd love to work with you to make some! 

Fonts used: Rochester, Type Keys 

Tutorial Images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W.
Ikat patterns: a: champagne culture // b: madeline weinrib // c: shumacher // d: greenwithglamor

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Sausage Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

While this has nothing to do with spring, it has everything to do with being absolutely delicious.  I discovered this recipe earlier this year and have made it several times since.  Each time, it's been a huge it.  So, add this into the rotation sometime soon!  The presentation is really pretty, so it's perfect to make for dinner guests, but it's also easy enough to make on any old night for dinner.

Recipe: Sausage Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Enjoy!



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Charlie's Breakfast Burritos

As much as I love to cook, I also love eating a delicious, homemade meal that I have not had to cook myself.  Charlie surprised me this morning with these awesome breakfast burritos that he threw together with some leftover bacon and sweet potato fries... they were too good not to share!

Sweet Potato Fry Breakfast Burritos

Ingredients:

• 2 tortillas (we used Trader Joe's Chia Seed Flour Tortillas) 
• 1 cup of sweet potato fries (cooked) (we used Trader Joe's Sweet Potato Fries - from the freezer section) 
• 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt (we used Trader Joe's Non-fat Plain Greek Yogurt) 
• 1 tablespoon of Sriracha 
• 3 eggs 
• 2-3 tablespoons of milk 
• 1 piece of cooked bacon (diced) 
• 1 handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced 
• 1 tablespoon of chopped green onion 
• 2 cups of arugula 

Preparation:

1. Whisk together the eggs and the milk. 
2. Reheat the sweet potato fries. (Charlie broiled them in the toaster oven for a few minutes until they started to brown.) 
3. Mix together the yogurt and Sriracha to make a sauce to spoon on top of the burritos (this was really, really good, so don't skip this step!). 
4. Add the diced, cooked bacon to the pan and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally until the pan looks greased and the bacon is heated through. 
5. Add the sliced cherry tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring the tomatoes occasionally to combine them with the bacon. 
6. Add the scrambled egg/milk mixture to the pan (with the bacon and tomatoes) and scramble it all for a few minutes until cooked. Once cooked, remove the pan from the heat and add salt and pepper to the mixture (to taste). 
7. Heat the tortillas. (Charlie used this method which he learned from his friend, Paul - I had never heard of this, but it sounds awesome and made the tortillas really tasty: Place the tortillas over low to medium flame on gas burner for about 30 seconds until they are warm and soft.  Flip and repeat on other side.) 
8. Burrito assembly: Place egg/bacon/tomato mixture on top of a flat tortilla. Place a handful of arugula on top of that. Next, add the sweet potato fries. Spoon the yogurt sauce on top and spread it over the fries. Lastly, sprinkle the burritos with green onions.  
9. Breakfast is served! 

P.S. - Can you tell that we love Trader Joe's?!? We're obsessed. I'm thinking about sharing our TJ's favorites in a post soon! 

Images by Clare Wilkinson for C Squared W.

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