DIYer? Check. Love summer? Check. Love making lists? Check. These three factors are the key to unleashing your creative outlet for summer projects. Take it from interior designer extraordinaire Cheryll Gillespie. She tells us about a fun summer project she’s working on and how to do it yourself!
Where to find summer project inspiration
Looking for a summer project? Need some rainy day ideas or just a creative outlet? At home, I always have a list of ‘things and ideas’ to do. Here’s some inspiration:
- When I see something that needs to be touched up or something breaks;
- If I have an idea for a specific space;
- If I’ve seen a photograph of a special new design idea
- Checked out a blog with an inspirational flower arrangement image;
- Read a magazine with an interesting small detail;
- Organizing trick I’d like to try.
I write it done on my list or put the photo in the file. When I have a spare twenty minutes, a few hours free or if I’m lucky, even an entire day to putz around the house, I pull out the list and get to work.
What’s on Cheryll’s list
Everything from ‘fix the magnetic closure on one of my cupboard doors’, to ‘spray painting the giant faux moss balls’ that sit near the front entrance, a reminder to ‘buy baskets’ to organize the back mud room closet, and ordering the ‘leather floor’ I want in the gym. The tasks can be big or small projects, expensive ideas or DIY goals that won’t cost a penny, long-term or short-term ideas, but all ultimately must share a common thread: they are all intended to maintain, improve, and spice up your life at home!
These are Cheryll’s summer projects. What’s on your list?
Your next summer project
This summer, I’ve made some pretty good headway on my list. I’ve painted some clay pots white that were formally terracotta in color (which would never work at my modern house) and they look amazing, contemporary and right on trend. The inspiration came from the last trip to Paris where I saw the most stunning 30-inch clay pots painted a bright red and flanking the doorway to a gorgeous apartment building.
How she did it
When the paint had dried, I filled the pots with Oleander trees and then covered the bases with moss and three succulent heads to create an outstanding arrangement. If I have a little time this weekend, I’ll pull out the paint brush and my glossy white paint and give a couple of coats to some wonderfully ornate frames we picked up at a vintage store last year. Then I’ll add in some black & white photos of family and friends and hang them on my gallery wall (another amazing project to add the the list, if you do not yet have a family wall of ‘fame’ in your home).
To the left is an image of Cheryll’s new pot. Imagine transforming a clay pot into a colourful one that suits your home’s personality.
A list can help organize your ideas – and home!
I love the effectiveness and organization of making lists and my ‘home to do’ list is truly my favourite list. It’s filled with great ideas and reminders that make life around home better. It also comes in handy if you’re making a run to the hardware store or are out shopping, you have a reference for what you need.
Living fabulously means taking good care of what you have (repairs and maintenance) and maintaining a constant motivation and inspiration for wonderful additions and makeovers for what is yet to come. Home is always an evolving project and there’s just something so soothing about working and improving the most important space in your lives- your home. That’s living fabulously!
Want to live fabulously in your own home? Whether you do it yourself by frequenting a furniture and home accessories store near you (check out our awesome directory!), or bring in a qualified interior design and decor specialist to help you out, you can start improving your life and home with simply summer projects.
