home decor Archives - VALLEY OF GRACE

January 17, 2021May 2, 2021

DIY Pine Coffee Table

Introduction

Some time this past spring, I decided that I wanted a DIY Pine coffee table for my guest room/library. It just so happened that my son was here visiting due to the changes that the pandemic brought to his career, and so it worked out nicely. I bought the items from the hardware store, and he built the coffee table.

Basically, I was blessed with a two for one deal: I was able to spend some quality time with him, as well as have him here to help me with some of the projects that had been sitting for a while. Either I was unable to do them because of not being handy with a drill and other tools, or I literally did not have the time because I was getting up early in the morning for work, and was too tired for completing projects when I got home.

DIY Coffee Pine Table Instructions: keywords: pine table, blogger, katina horton, simple functional grace-filled living, Valley of Grace, lifestyle, lifestyle blogger, thriving, plumbing pipe materials, interior design, influencer, minimalism, minimalist, home decor — Photo by Katina Horton

Mission

I ended up going to the hardware store about three times. First of all, I was going to make a skinny coffee table, but the piece of wood that I bought was too short. I looked at the table and decided that the would wasn’t wide enough. In essence, the table would look too skinny. So, I set out to buy a piece of wood that was wider and longer. Come to find out, Menards stated that they do not sell lumber pieces wider than 12 inches. The store associate suggested that I place two pieces of wood next to each other and connect them together with some form of hardware from the hardware department.

The guy in the hardware department showed me several different pieces of hardware to connect the lumber together. However, he stated that he was more so biased towards one particular bracket. He enforced the importance of having hardware that could handle the weight of the lumber, and he’d had experience building a table for his mother, so I was definitely all ears to his suggestions. I decided upon a hardware piece called “mending braces”.

Unfortunately, I ended up going to the hardware store another time because some of the plumbing pipe flanges were bent. This was going to cause a problem with the stability of the table. I felt like a kid waiting to open his gifts on Christmas. Was this table ever going to happen? Well, it did.

I am very excited with the end result. The coffee table helped to make the library look like a library. The natural wood also helped to give the room more of an organic look. And lastly, the table is multifunctional: it serves as a holder for magazines, books, frames, mugs, and a footrest.

There are a couple of tips that I would like to give you in regard to building this table (according to my son):

The more mending braces used, the sturdier the table will be. (Especially if someone decides to sit on it.)
You want to make sure that the two pieces of construction lumber are as straight as possible before you start drilling the holes into the wood.
The flanges should be as flat and stable as possible before you start drilling into the wood.
Be careful that the wood that you select isn’t too split, or the table won’t last. (I like the worn split look, but not too split.)

Tools:

(8) 1/2″ galvanized pipe flanges
2 packs of National Hardware Mending Braces (4 braces are in each pack)
(1) 1/2″ 48″ galvanized pipe nipple
(8) 1/2″ 6″ galvanized pipe nipples
(4) 1/2″ 5″ galvanized pipe nipples
1 dril
1 screwdriver
(6) 1/2″ galvanized tees
(2) 2″ x 12 ” wide X 60″ long pieces of construction lumber (this is what I should have done; instead I bought one long piece of construction lumber had them to cut it down to size; either one works. The second option give you leftover lumber for other projects.)
(16) 1 1/2″ construction screws

Execution

Make a letter H with the plumbing pipe materials on both sides, connecting the 1/2″ 48″ galvanized pipe in the middle, per the instructions and picture below.

Take a flange, screw in one 6″ pipe nipple, attach one tee, and then another pipe flange at the bottom.

Attach a 5″ nipple to the tee in the middle, followed by a tee, then another 5″ pipe nipple.

Make the right side of the “H”.

Take a flange, screw in one 6″ pipe nipple, attach one tee, and then another pipe flange at the bottom.

2. Attach the 1/2″ 48″ pipe nipple to the middle tee of the “H” on the left side.

Create the Right H following the same instructions above, and then attach to the 1/2″ 48″ pipe nipple in the middle.

3. Lay the two pieces of wood next to each other, making sure to attach enough mending brackets for stability, staggering on the top and bottom of the wood.

Turn your structure upside down, laying it on top of the top piece of the table, using 1 1/2 inch screws to attach the pipe flanges.

Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.

Psalms 127: 1

May 21, 2019April 28, 2021

Simplicity of Plants

Plants bring so many benefits to our lives: 1) They give us oxygen and clear the carbon dioxide from the air. 2) Like pictures, they bring life and promote creativity to one’s home. 3) They bring the outside in by causing a de-stressing effect, and 4) For the most part, they are simple and low-maintenance.

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A few months ago, one of my friends blessed me with two plants. I decided to add them to my bedroom so that I could feel refreshed upon waking up in the morning. I am all about aesthetics, and especially having spaces that are light and airy. I decided to place one in the corner of my bedroom in front of a wall mirror. The second one was placed on top of my storage trunk, along with another faux plant.

My son was given two plants recently for his birthday. One of them is a bamboo plant. He placed them in chairs by the living room window so that they could get proper sunlight. At first, I was questioning the location. Now, I have decided that I like them there. The greenery against the natural colors of the chairs and the curtain makes you feel so relaxed.

What simple, functional, grace-filled plants do you own? What places are you keeping them? Send in some comments and pictures below.

Have a grace-filled weekend!

Katina

Check out:

Create a Tic-Tac-Toe Game for $5

December 8, 2018April 27, 2021

Home Design: 6 Steps to decorating your new home

Today I am featuring a guest post on how to decorate, coming from a blogger over in Sweden. Our last DIY decorating post can be found here. I hope that these tips will inspire you as you decorate your new home.

Interior design and home decor does not always feel like the easiest field to dig into. However, it will always be of importance for as long as human kind moves around and keeps it interest of beautiful surroundings. Research studies during the past decades have shown that general content and happiness can be correlated to how beautiful one person’s surrounding are perceived. We all know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder but that does not take away the fact that if you regard your surroundings and your home as beautiful, your mindset and overall content will increase and improve to the better! This is something that everyone would benefit from!

But the first problem remains, interior design and the project of decorating your home beautifully is not always the easiest task. Therefore, we have written a small guide for you to go through and hopefully fins some guiding and useful advice whenever you find yourself browsing through online furniture shops.

Step 1: Do research on brands and style in order to decorate

Research, research and then a little more research. Why does this topic feel sometimes obnoxiously persistent in everyday life? But the fact is that without doing your thorough research, things will happen ad hoc and you will hence not feel content with your final choices. In the big ocean of interior brands one group stands out of everyone. Can you guess which one? Well, it is the Scandinavian design houses of course! Scandinavian interior design, with its unbarked and simple look has been on everyone and their mothers lips for many years now. Sleek oak wood, beautiful washed linen fabrics and a bright and uplifting palette are a few words that describes the Scandinavian design best. There are plenty of websites to browse through while doing your thorough research of Scandinavian furniture and interior. We have picked out a few examples for you to get started:

Reforma Sthlm – One of Scandinavia’s biggest inspirational websites where you easily can get inspired by everything from kids furniture with cool design to vintage and industrial interior. If you feel like buying something, they are also an e-commerce site so feel free to shop til you drop! Their focus is divided into two main parts. Danish, and modern interior as well as more rustic, vintage and industrial vibes. With good prices (it surely sometimes feel like you are shopping at one of the bid low cost furniture chains) and magnificent quality you will surely not find anything like it anywhere else. Make sure to be ready with your google translate button though, if you are not from Scandinavia that is. Otherwise be inspired by the beautiful pictures of homes and nice interior. It is just like a mini pinterest focused on only furniture and design!

House Doctor – The queen of Danish interior design. If you haven’t heard of House Doctor yet, be happy you are doing it now! They sell everything from sleek striped down wooden pieces, like drink trolleys, coffee tables and dining chairs to more bohemian and soft interior like seat cushions, decorative pillows, blankets and even vases and candle holders with ethnic patterns. The designs are always luxurious and high quality.

Bloomingville – The Danish furniture saga continues to the next of beautiful brands. Amongst Bloomingvilles range of everything from table cloths to decorative mirrors, you will find exclusive and fun design perfect for every home out there. With a fun and fabulous color palette and design that really has been though out outside of the box, you will get a smile on your face while figuring out how to decorate and furnish you apartment or house on this website. If you feel like getting something for yourself, why not head back to Reforma Sthlm and buy it. Reforma is the main retailer of Bloomingvilles products and you will surely be happy and satisfied with your new dining table or bureau.

Ib Laursen – For the people who wish to be different. If you don’t want your home to feel like the “home next door”, make sure to be inspired by the range of furniture you find at Ib Laursen. They use plenty of recycled materials such as old wooden doors and parts from former industries. The fact that they can use these wared parts and create them into amazing décor and furniture is something from out of this world! Buying vintage furniture online has suddenly become a possibility which is something that many people have not yet been informed of. But hey, here you go!
When your research is done and you have gotten a picture of what interior style you like, move on to our next step!

Step 2: Write a list of what you need for your home

To not find yourself in a situation where you seem to drown in excess pieces of furniture that are just standing around doing nothing to no one, you need to figure out what you really need. And we need really, when we say really! This step is easy (and fun!) make a room-by-room plan where each room gets a list of what will be needed there. For example, in a bed room you will need a bed, blanket, decorative cushions, a night stand, a wall shelf, maybe a secretary with matching chair, a couch or an armchair, Some beautiful vases and pots, a soft carpet and… stop there! By writing a structured list of what furniture you need and where, it will be easier to make a budget as well as visualize your future in your new home, which brings us on to the next step in this guide…

Step 3: Visualize

We will try not to sound too new-age and hippie in this section, but visualizing your future somewhere will make it easier for you to actually create it for yourself. Step into the room you are decorating, for instance the kitchen, and try to really picture the colors, the fabrics, the materials and what will be placed where. Imagine you kitchen table, the plates and color palette and use all your new knowledge from the research you did at Reforma Sthlm. You will find yourself actually seeing what you want and how you want it to look. When this is done, head over to the next step!

Step 4: Plan and Shop

Bring out the note pad again, it is time for some planning! What furniture shops and interior boutiques have what you need? Do you want to go buy it physically or do you wish to purchase it online and get it delivered to your door step? Make a budget and make sure it is aligned with your monetary capability. Be smart and creative during this step, for a lot if people the actual planning is the most fun part of the interior process. You can structure your shopping list in whatever way you feel is the most convenient. Either you do it after each room, with boxes to tick next to each item when it is purchased and receiver. But the easies way is to do it after what shop you will get what. To give you an example: Let us say that you want to buy that beautiful lamp from House Doctor, that eye catching book shelf from House Doctor and that beautiful vintage coffee table made of recycled wood from Ib Laursen, fins a store that offers all of these items and structure the list from there. Too continue on the same example, the online furniture store Reforma Sthlm offers all of these items and thus you can tick off the boxes next to each items when you have gone through with the safe and quick purchase. When buying furniture and home décor online make sure that the payment methods are safe, that the store you are buying from offers good customer service and for your safety, also make sure that the pieces you get are refundable. Hopefully you will be pleased with your new items but better safe than sorry, right!?

Step 5: Put everything together in your home

The beautiful thing about online interior stores are the obvious fact that you get everything delivered to your doorstep. How did people manage 50 years ago? Let us be happy that we don’t need to drive around ourselves anymore. When you get the delivery, the fun begins. Make sure to have a friend or family over because this can still het heavy and sweaty! Putting all your need furniture together, whether it is that beautiful velvet couch or all the kitchen accessories that needs to be put into place, it will take time and energy. And together with a friend, assembling furniture becomes a lot more fun!

Step 6: Decorate to Enjoy your home

When your new home is furnished and decorated it is time to enjoy your achievements every hour of every day. With your new home décor, such as astonishing mirrors, cool lighting and comfortable upholstery you can now live a life in beautiful peace. Just like research has shown, a comfortable and appreciated environment in your home will in fact improve your happiness and content and therefor this process is as fun as it is important and life changing.

Guest post by Anna Jonsson, Reforma Sthlm

October 30, 2018April 27, 2021

Building a Breakfast Bar

Background Story on the Breakfast Bar

Sometimes you end up with the situation like myself, where you want the ability to seat more people in the kitchen (perhaps 10 to 12), but you don’t have the space, nor the money to do it. This is where building a breakfast bar comes in handy. Breakfast bars are great because they are multifunctional. They can serve as a breakfast bar/homework center/painting spot/reading area. You decide.

interior design, home decor, breakfast bar, kitchen, pipes, lumber, diy home decor — Plumbing Pipe Breakfast Bar

Last time, I explained how to build shelves using plumbing pipes here. The breakfast bar featured in this post only takes about 30 minutes to build, and very few materials. Plus, you can’t beat the price. Since the length is only 12 inches, you can probably setup two of these in a smaller kitchen, and still be fine.

Four years ago, I purchased the stools that are featured from Amazon. I decided upon these particular ones because I wanted a combination of an industrial/farmhouse/rustic look, along with something that would withstand wear and tear of teenagers and usage in general. Plus, they are both simple and functional, and that’s what Valley of Grace is all about. I don’t like to have to keep buying furniture. The stools come in two different sizes: table height and bar height.

ACTIVITY:

Building a breakfast bar

SUPPLIES:

2 ½” Tees

4 ½” flanges

2 ½” 36” nipples (or whatever height you choose)

2 ½” 12” nipples (or whatever width you choose)

A box of 2-inch screws

1 piece of 8 ft. 8” lumber from the lumber department (add additional 2 ft. for 6 people fitting comfortably, and another 2ft. for a coffee/tea station to be added at the end)

4 clips (optional for securing lumber to 12” nipples)

Stud finder

Drill

DIRECTIONS:

Assemble two 7 shapes to build the bar without tightly screwing:
Connect the 12” nipple to the flange.
Screw the Tee onto the 12” nipple.
Screw the 36” nipple onto the tee.
Connect the flange to the 36” nipple.
Use a stud finder to find the location of the studs in the wall.
Using the 2-inch screws, drill the two 7 shapes into the studs in the wall.
Place the piece of lumber on top.

Optional: Secure the (2) 12” nipples to the piece of lumber with two clips using a drill, and two screws per clip for both 7 shapes.

Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. Psalms 127:1

God bless,

Katina

October 24, 2018April 27, 2021

5 Reasons to Use Wire Baskets

******I am not receiving compensation for the links that are mentioned in this post.

Background Story on Wire Baskets

A little while ago, I talked about the different uses for crates for organization. You can find that post here. Today, our organizational focus will be on the usage of wire baskets. I love baskets of all shapes, sizes, and textures. And so, of course, wire baskets would be included in this group. I like organizing things period. What I have realized within the last few years, is that when we are organized, we are able to turn the five hour paper search to a 15 minute paper search. Our lives run smoother, and we’re able to spend more time doing the things that matter: spending time with our family and friends, serving others, and being able to get those hobbies in. This is what happened when I didn’t have my scrap-booking supplies organized.

Not having things organized discourages doing anything because our efforts are multiplied. We start to think to ourselves, ” Why even bother? If I want to paint, it’s going to take 2 hours to find all the supplies!”

Baskets take the look of organization to a whole new level. Here are five reasons to contemplate using wire baskets:

Simplicity and Practicality

Wire baskets are easy to clean. All you need is a damp cloth to wipe them down and keep going. It doesn’t get any easier than that. Dust naturally collects on anything, and that where the damp cloth comes in. Also, every now and then, something may leak out, that is when a small squirt of dish detergent gets added to the cloth. Wipe and you’re done!

home decor, interior design, organizing, scrapbooking, crafts, wire baskets, baskets, aesthetics, home decor, diy, home design — **Fruit and Produce Storage**

Space Savers

Wire baskets help you to get the clutter off the counters and off the floor. Because they can be purchased as a three or four in one, or individual units, they are easy to mount on the wall using 2-inch nails.

Homework Centers

I home-schooled for 12 years. Unfortunately, I didn’t think about using wire baskets at the time. They are perfect for organizing individual folders and subjects for each kid without losing your mind. If you have more than one basket on the wall, then you can use one of the wire baskets to store all incoming bills and important papers that need attention as well.

Other homeschool and business ideas for wire baskets can be found here, where they have wire baskets specifically for mail and magazines, and as part of a wall organization unit for home and business.

Multi-functional

There isn’t one room that I can think of in the house that wire baskets can’t be used in. For the bathroom, you can use them for facial and toiletry products. They can even be used for towels and shampoo.

For the kitchen, wire baskets are good for storing mason jars filled with items such as nutritional yeast, corn meal, and sugar. Spices and seasonings stored in wire baskets help you to get them off of the counter tops, along with still being able to see what you are needing to use. Lastly, for you bakers, wire baskets are perfect solutions for storing your rolling pins.

Other kitchen uses for wire baskets are the following: fruit and produce, napkins. place mats, and apron storage. I love the Madam Stoltz ones pictured here at Reforma Stockholm as a fruit and produce idea.

Aesthetics

Last, but not least, wire baskets just look good. I am all about the aesthetics being in line for number three after simplicity and functionality.

Happy wire basket adventuring and have a blessed evening!

Katina

October 17, 2018April 27, 2021

Door Decoration

How would you like to make something fun for your door with less than $5? Well, that’s what I did this past April. Recently, I had the idea that I was going to take it down since we are now in the fall season. However, it just hasn’t happened. I liked this project for three reasons:

the look
the price
the time

By the way, I purchased all of these materials from Dollar Tree.

Here are the materials that you will need:

home decor, DIY, home design, interior design, table decor, door, blog, decorations, flowers, door wreath — Wreath as a Door Decoration

1 bundle of jute material (optional) $1

1 wreath $1

2 small bundles of fake flowers $2

Total Cost $4.00 + tax

Instructions:

Fold the bottom half of each of the flowers stems.
Tuck the flower stems into the wreath by placing them in between the individual pieces of the wreath.
Tie bows around each of the individual flowers.
Hang on your door and enjoy!

Optional: This wreath can also be used as a table decoration.

And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Joshua 24:15

October 6, 2018April 27, 2021

Upcycling Pillows With a Scarf

Upcycling things can be an adventure. It just takes a few minutes of creativity and little bit of down time. A few months ago, I upcycled my pillow cases on my bed using a scarf. You can go to the link here.

pillows, interior design, bedroom, sewing, home decor, DIY home decor, decorating, upcycling — pic by Matthew Henry at Burst by Shopify

I am starting to really appreciate Saturday mornings now. Every blue moon, I have to leave out early, but for the most part, my new thing for Saturday mornings is to do my devotion, eat some breakfast, and sit in bed and read for a good two hours. This doesn’t always happen during the week, so Saturday morning reading is my relaxation time.

What I love is when the air isn’t too cool or too warm, as the air is here now in the Midwest. I love it! It has been raining for the last few days, but I love the idea of a good book, a blanket, physical rest, along with the concept of resting in Jesus on a Saturday morning.

I am rereading Nothing to Prove by Jennie Allen, Unexpected by Christine Caine, and about five other books at the same time. I know that this might sound strange to some of you, but sometimes in the evening, I like to have a good cooking show on while reading.

It’s nice to still be able to hear the chipmunks playing outside. It wasn’t until two and a half years ago, that I became familiar with the sound that the chipmunk makes.