Vintage Revivals • Page 116 of 120 • Fearless DIY

Embrace The Ugly.

By Mandi | 09/20/2012 | 18 Comments

Getting close to wrapping up all of the posts about the $150 Room Makeover (yes, I know I still need to do the Herringbone throw, that one is next!!)

So go with me on this. When we walk into a space that we don’t so much love and see the boring, plain, not awesomeness of it, do you feel like you need $57,000 to totally change it? Like that is the only way to get this room to its full potential. Well guess what Candace Olsen? You don’t.

The biggest thing that you need are some guts.

You can change things on a MUCH smaller budget (I hope that I have proved this point by doing this room makeover). People think that if they have a small budget that they have to make small changes.

WRONG-O!

You can make great changes on a small budget!!

But sometimes.

Just sometimes.

You have to embrace the ugly.

This GIANT safe that weighs 47 BILLION lbs. was the ugly in Grit’s room.

Would I have liked to put a cute chair and little table there with a mirror on the wall behind it? HECK YES.

Was it an option?

Nope.

The safe needed to say.

Balls.

When you are in this situation of having a literal giant elephant in the room the first things that come to mind are ways to cover it. You could build a screen, hang a curtain, make a sliding wall, build a bookcase that flips around when you pull the right combo of books. You know, crap like that. But then at some point reality sets in and you realize that none of those things are going to happen on your budget than can be blown in one trip to Target (please tell me I am not the only one that does that!? I mean what did I even buy??!)

So instead of banishing this corner of the room and doing nothing I decided to embrace the ugly and make it look like the safe is SUPPOSED to be there. Smart right?!

We did this by bringing attention to the wall.

This project is really easy, all you need is a laser level and a couple of rolls of ScotchBlue.

In fact. Instead of showing you a few process pictures I made you a video of the ENTIRE process! (Don’t worry its only 2 minutes long!)

And just for fun here are some more before and afters:

In those pictures I had you thinking that we just loved the crap out of that safe right?!! Ha! That is what it means to embrace the ugly.

Make sure you check out the rest of the projects in the $150 Room Makeover:

And don’t forget to vote for your fave room for the Epic Room Makeover Giveaway! Voting is SO close I cant even look at it.

Love Your Guts, Mandi

The Suckiest Suck Job EVER.

By Mandi | 09/19/2012 | 49 Comments

Lets just chat for a second. I love all things DIY, all things but one.

Painting ceilings.

Gaaaaaah! I am pretty sure that job was created by Satan himself. You know why? Because it SUCKS.

And because it sucks SO hard I have ceilings in my house that have looked like this for the better part of a month…(or 2 but who’s counting?)

Just keepin it real folks.

What is your suckiest suck job? Don’t worry that big white stripe goes from my living room right into my kitchen…its not noticeable at.all. Please tell me I am not the only one that does this?!!?

And don’t forget to vote for your favorite room to win the Epic Room Makeover Giveaway today!

Love Your Non-Sucky Guts, Mandi

The Top 10 Plead Their Case! VOTE NOW!

By Mandi | 09/17/2012 | 130 Comments

Ok guys, here we go! I am about to introduce you to the Top 10 contestants for the Epic Room Makeover Giveaway. The amount of time that went into these submissions is intense and I hope you will take the time to look over all of the incredible submissions before you vote, and then vote for your fave to win a complete room makeover!!

Annnnnnnd. There are big plans for a party one of the nights. And I want you to come!!! So if you have no emotional attachment to any of the contestants consider voting for the one that lives closest to you because I want YOU TO COME!!! SO that is why I have included where the winner is from because I WANT YOU TO COME!!! More info will be going up when the winner is announced about it! (Did I mention that I want you to come?)

Top Top 10 were chosen based on votes (4), random.org (2) and wild cards (4)If you want to view their original post you can click the voting link and it will take you there!

To vote simply click the little star underneath the image/name of the lucky lady you are voting for!

And without further adieu, here they are in no particular order:

Entry #1: Celeste

Hey Vintage Revival Fans! Matt & Celeste Davis here to give you the Top 10 Reasons to Vote for Us Letterman style!

#10- The rest of our house isn’t awful, so it won’t look all mismatched and train-wrecky.
#9- My 2 year old son had been making random references to Mandi as he jabbers to himself, apparently Momma is a bit obsessed….. little bit.
#8-I live close enough to Mandi that if I win and we just happen to become BFFs, we could totally hang. (c’mon, you know you all want to be her friend in real life!)
#7- It’s an easier and less frustrating choice than who to vote for in that other election coming up.
#6- I hate to sound braggy, but I am kind of a handy woman/beast. I love building stuff and I’m decidedly the more handy one between my husband and I. I totally wish I were a construction worker sometimes. Me + power tools = friends.
#5- I am (mostly) eating Paleo too! So I’ll feed Mandi how she’s trying to eat. Although I cannot promise that there won’t be cake. Cake is how I show love. Do it for Mandi!
#4- My friend Sarah gave me the most awesome movie poster of all time. Aren’t you dying to see how Mandi integrates “Attack of the 50 Foot Woman” into a playroom?
#3- Between my husband and I, we have two awesome kids and 50 nieces and nephews and 7 great nieces and nephews. Since just about everyone comes through Vegas at one time or another, we really want to have a great place where our friends and family feel comfortable staying as long as they want. Do it for the kids.
#2- I’m honestly afraid that the glitz and glam of Vegas is going to my head. I just pinned damask glitter wallpaper for Pete’s sake, and I wasn’t thinking of using it in moderation either. And the Number One reason you really should vote for us to win the Vintage Revivals Epic Room Makeover.…..
#1- “They’ve done studies, you know. Sixty percent of the time, it works every time.” — Anchorman

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Celeste’s video

Entry #2: Christina

How-do-you-do? I’m Christina. I live in the Northern Virginia Area.

Over the past week and a half I have been posting an exhibit of myself. There are 6 videos where I have attempted to manifest the “epic-ness” of this opportunity. To me, this is equivalent to winning the Miss America pageant, the lottery, American Idol, Project Runway etc. Your decision as a voter is very tough. Because of this, I knew the only way to win YOU and your very special vote would be to provide you with some unique facts about me, Christina, at Cavalier on Annandale and to continue to prove to you how much I want this. I know you are going to enjoy my room as the EPIC Room Makeover 2012 the most! I promise that if voted to win this contest, it will not be taken for granted. I would be honored. To keep that promise, if I win I will do a video of the “Gangnam Style” dance, for you. Really. Other things about me to note: I have an unhealthy obsession for things cotton candy flavored, I’m an Army wife, I love to paint, my favorite book is Pride and Prejudice, and my favorite movie is Shakespeare in Love.

MY 6 RALLY VIDEOS HAD A SECRET MESSAGE! Watch to find out:

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Christina’s video

Entry #3: Mattea

My plea: I have never won the lottery. I have never won a car. I have never won a house. I have never won a beach island vacation. I have never won a game show. I have never won a home appliance. I have never won furniture. I have never won a thousand bucks. I have never won FIVE bucks. I have never won a pair of shoes. I have never won a pair of socks. I have never won a gift card. I have never won a whole new wardrobe. I have never won a boat. I have never won a jacuzzi. I have never won concert tickets. And I have never won an Epic Room Makeover from Mandi Gubler of Vintage Revivals. Please help me cure my nasty case of the nevers and vote for me! You know what they say, “never say never”.

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Mattea’s video

Entry #4: Kami

You need to vote for me because I don’t want to die knowing that the only contest I’ve ever won in my life was a coloring contest. True Story. 3rd grade, picture of a parrot, I won! Since then, I’ve never won any other contest. Yes, my coloring skills are pretty awesome, but my painting skills…not so much! This is why I need Mandi’s help making over my master bedroom. The one time I tried painting something in my home, it was an epic fail. My kitchen table is now up for sale by the way! Don’t let a coloring contest be the only contest I ever win, and don’t let me ruin my master bedroom! Pa-lease vote for Kami! This is a CHANGE I believe in, a CHANGE that’s up to you, and I believe in you! Thanks!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Kami’s video

Entry #5: Kristen

We need this room to be– the cutest that you’re ever ever gonna see! My girls share a room, and just recently ditched the crib for our youngest, and we can’t seem to get the creative juices flowing. As my girls said in the video, they need their room to be fancy—just like them (chandelier, please)! They have such energetic personalities with all sorts of fancy in them, I’d love them to have a room that reflects that, and I know Mandi’s personality and style would fit in well with theirs! Bring that fancy Mandilicious-ness on down to Austin Texas!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Kristen’s video

Entry #6: Kelsey

I am a stay at home mommy, a student’s wife, and DIY fanatic! I love following DIY blogs and dream of what my house could look like if Mandi Gubler gave the entire place an extreme facelift…. Sigh. Wouldn’t that be AMAZING?? Since the hubby is in school full time, and I am a full time stay at home mom trying to make ends meet with what we have, it leaves the decorating budget slim, to none. It would be a dream come true if Mandi could make our master bedroom freakishly awesome. Check out the video to see why you should vote for me!!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Kelsey’s video

Entry #7: Lynda

If you saw my submission video you saw my three little angels completely trash our master bedroom. And yes that was REAL LATEX PAINT they painted on the big black bed!! And the walls! Then if you saw video number two you saw my hubby as the Lucky Leprechaun. This experience has been like no other. My entire family has become immersed in this contest. So, please vote for me because if I don’t win there will be major sadness over at the Hamilton House. The video you are about to watch was taken at one of my favorite treasure hunting places- Abe’s……If I win, Mandi and I will for sure stop in hunting for treasures…and hopefully she will love it as much as I do!! Vote for me!! Love you guys!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Lynda’s video

Entry #8: April

I completely believe that not any one of us is more deserving than another. We all want it. I want this so, so much!! I have dreamed of the chance to have her come and create the magic that is Mandi, at my house. This is my chance. It’s so close I can smell paint already. What’s killing me is that it is completely out of my control at this point. So, I beg, on my hands and knees, for you to allow this to happen. Listen. This contest is about fans. It’s for the fans, by the fans, and happens because of fans. All fans of Mandi. I am that fan. Labeled ‘Superfan’ by Mandi, herself. I love her. She knows I love her, but what you don’t know is that I love her. So let me tell you. I love her like a fat kid loves cake, like Mandi loves Krylon, like you and I like pinterest! You’ll get some laughs out of the deal too. I tend to laugh my guts out when I’m up past my bedtime (watch my last video for proof!) then add in paint fumes and things are bound to get pretty ca.razy. So, fans unite and conquer!!!!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see April’s video

Entry #9: Jenni

MANDI!! COME HELP MY SPRAY PAINTED COUCH!!

Hi Everyone! I am in desperate need of Mandi’s Epic Room Makeover – I’m completely out of ideas for my living room! Plus husband HATES spending money on decorating and he thinks our room is fine just the way it is!! (WHAT?!? Did you see the pictures!!!) Seriously go check them out – right now – and while you’re at it vote – for me! 🙂 There’s barely anything on the walls, so many thrifted items in need of a face lift and did you even SEE MY COUCH!!! I had the super fantastic idea to spray paint it and then completely ran out of money! The paint didn’t cover like I thought and now my ginormous couch is half painted and half not! (Big time fail) This is the first room people see when they walk into my house! (Embarrassing!!) It’s the only room in our house with a tv and we spend a lot of time in here – I would love for it to be a space we can enjoy! I can’t make up my mind about anything in the room so I seriously need Mandi to come and spread all kinds of her Mandiliciousness all over my room!!!! PLEASE PLEASE vote for my room makeover!!

Entry #10: Steph

Finding out I made the Top10 for this makeover is the highlight of my weekend FOR SURE! I absolutely adore Mandi and setting her LOOSE in any room of my house would be a dream come true! The room I’m submitting for this makeover is a dual-purpose room- it started as a sweet nursery for my little guy {Mason}, but the big plans I had to make it fabulous kind of fell apart when I got the “bright idea” to utilize this space as a craft room as well. My craft supplies moved in and then life happened and I never got around to organizing much of anything! In the meantime, Mason has to sleep in a room that just screams “WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED IN HERE?!” I’d love your vote to send Mandi to my home in Phoenix, Arizona and give Mason the nursery of his sweet little dreams. Watch my video so you can get a better idea of what we are dealing with. Don’t judge the ugly haircut Mason is sporting (I did that myself!) or the red circles under his eyes- (I did that too.) I didn’t get the sunscreen close enough to his eyes and we spent all morning playing outside, so the poor kid has sun-kissed cheek bones, an ugly haircut, and a room that needs some serious help! Vote for ME!!!

If you are on mobile click HERE to see Steph’s video

Mandi here again! Can you guys even believe that competition?! You guys have a tough choice to make!! So think long and hard about it…but not too long or hard, we don’t want any injuries! mmmmmkay?

You can vote once a day. Voting ends September 24th at 11:59 PM MST.

Good luck ladies!

I want to give a HUGE thank you to my dream team of sponsors, I LITERALLY couldn’t have done this without them.

Love Your Guts, Mandi

Last Day For Voting, Grapes, Paleo and Other Such Randomness.

By Mandi | 09/14/2012 | 18 Comments

Dudes. HOW does this time fly by so dang fast for me?!! I am sure for those of you that have entered the Epic Room Makeover Giveaway it has NOT flown by, so sorry about that.

Tonight at midnight (MST) the votes will be finalized and the Top 4 will move on to make up 4 of the Top 10!!!

I cannot EVEN tell you how close the voting is. (Like there are 10-15 of the entries that are all neck in neck) Its SO freakin stressful to watch because I know how bad everyone wants it!!

Hailee is coming over today to finalize everything else and we will probably hit up the DI for a little thrifting fun. May the thrifting gods be with me.

Also. (sorry this post is SO random!!)

I am trying to eat Paleo, but truth be told I am having a hard time giving up milk…and sugar. Do you eat Paleo? What is your secret to not switching to your 7 year old self that sneaks treats? (Please tell me that I am not the only one that does that!!)

via

And Miss Dylan has always been a light in our lives but the last few months she is progressively getting more and more hilarious. For example? Last night we were driving home from picking up Durangos at 9:10 and she says “Mom. The red lights are for hot fire and the green lights are for……um……Green Grapes?” So here’s to you Dyl.

Via

Also if you follow Vintage Revivals on FB you know that yesterday I posted a vote rallying video (I wont link to it because I don’t know how fair that would be) BUT Dylan has been singing “Ma-a-aa-a-a-a-an-diiiii-licious. Mandilicious.” ALL FREAKING DAY. So thanks for that April.

And I just need to proclaim from the rooftops my love for Beckie from Infarrantly Creative. This girl is the real deal people.

Ok enough rambling.

Love Your Guts, Mandi

Tufted White Headboard For Only $69.00

By Mandi | 09/13/2012 | 12 Comments

A tutorial for a tufted headboard is not something that is hard to find, there are a ton and for all different styles of beds. This tutorial is special though, its more of a teaching you to fish type tutorial because you can use this basic concept and design your own headboard!

Start with a 4×8 sheet of particle board. I got mine at Lowe’s for $14.00. While you are there have them rip cut it to the size you need (mine was 62”x 48”) and then have them cut it into quarters. One perk about doing a headboard like this is that you are able to fit it in your car, you wont need a truck/SUV to haul it home!! While you are at Lowe’s pick up your screws and washers too. The screws you need are 2” wood screws and one medium and one large washer for each screw. You will know how many screws you need based on the number of tufts you are going to create. You will also need at least 6 metal mending straps for a queen size bed. But there is nothing wrong with using more!

The main component to a tufted headboard is foam. Foam is SO expensive if you buy it from somewhere like Joann’s (even with a 40% off coupon) so here is a top secret tip. If you go to Home Depot right now they are selling camping pads for $19.99!! They are usually located by the customer service desk. I needed 2.

And last but not least you will need fabric. My go to fabric for pretty much everything is Duck Cloth. It’s a heavy duty canvas that is made out of cotton. It comes in bunches of colors and you can buy it at Joann’s. I needed 2 yards. The typical price is 10.99 a yard but I had a 60% off coupon so for 2 yards I spent just under $9.00 total!!

Start by cutting your foam to size. The easiest way that I did this was just by laying my piece of wood on the top of it and using a long serrated knife to cut it.

Then you are going to wrap your fabric around the foam and board pulling it as tight as possible. Staple one side and then move to the opposite side (do this on all 4 sides of your wood.)

When you have all 4 pieces upholstered its time to join them together. This is where your mending straps come in. Make sure that they are all straight and pushed together as tight as possible.

Then just drive wood screws into the back. I used screws that were 1.5” (you wont need to worry about them going through the front of the wood because the foam will hide everything.)

This is what your headboard should look like at this point:

Now to tuft.

If you want your tufting to be super deep and pleated I would recommend this tutorial from Brooke. I want my tufting to be more modern (obvs to go with the vibe of the room). There are a million ways under the sun to tuft, this is just one of them.

You need to find the center of each panel. I did this with a measuring tape and a pencil. I SUPER LIGHTLY marked where the center was on my first panel. This is where it gets fun. You are going to drill your screw directly through the front of your fabric. I recommending making a small hole first or else it will make a really loud POP when you start drilling.

The washers are to make sure that the fabric doesn’t just move around the screw. Cause then you would be left with a hole in your fabric, a screw in your backboard, and zero tufting.

To make things easier on myself I used a laser level to line up the next tuft. That way I only had to measure one side, and I knew it was straight.

Then I glued the buttons on the top of the screw.

Also, depending on how deep you tuft your screws may poke out of the back of the wood. If this is the case you will probably need to dremel/hacksaw them to get a flush mounting on your wall.

Now for the mounting.

The original plan was to use this guy to hang it on the wall (like a giant picture of sorts) It is a Hangman from Lowe’s. They are just over $10 and can hold up to 200 lbs.

The problem with that is that this wall is concrete…so ya. We couldn’t find the studs. So the Hangman had to go back. THe solution ended up being mounting 1x4s on the back and then screwing them into the bedframe. Just like we did on this old door turned headboard.

Pretty amazing if you ask me!!

Don’t forget to check out the other amazing tutorials in the $150 room makeover:

And don’t forget that round 1 of voting for the Epic Room Makeover Giveaway ends tomorrow night at midnight!

Love Your Guts, Mandi

When My Life Changed.

By Mandi | 09/10/2012 | 38 Comments

Today is one of the happiest dates in all of existence. Over the weekend we celebrated Court’s 2nd year of sobriety!! If you want more info on all of that check out My Real Life Story!

I am baffled and amazed at how drastically different my life is from the chaos and hell that it was exactly 2 years ago.

I am beyond proud of my wonderful amazing husband. He is the strongest, most grateful person I know. I am so blessed that I get to hear him share his hope with others a few times a week. I am grateful for these last 2 years but I am also grateful for the 8 before that. They have made us who we are and I wouldn’t change that for anything. I am SERIOUSLY lucky that he is so freaking supportive when it comes to projects and blog stuff. Love you Lover!!!

The pain of addiction is ravaging, the destruction that it leaves in its wake is devastating, and the darkness is suffocating.

But there is hope.

So if you or someone you know is fighting (or not fighting yet) an addiction, don’t give up!!

Have a happy Monday, and don’t forget to vote for your favorite entry for the Epic Room Makeover (voting is SUPER close and there are some incredible entries!!)

Love Your Guts, Mandi

Color Blocked Clock Art

By Mandi | 09/07/2012 | 12 Comments

When you only have $150 to completely overhaul a space you have to get creative, REALLY creative. I made this Color Blocked Clock Art for $5.97. Total. For all three. Want to know how to make your own? You will DIE at the simplicity, pinkie promise.

One of my budget secrets is to utilize the people that you know and see if they can help you out! I called my friend Shaun at Aspen Mills (you know him as the muscle behind Brooke’s TV Frame) and asked if he had any extra wood laying around that he would like to cut into perfect circles for me and Shaun being the great guy he is, said yes.

The reason these clocks are so cool is because of the rad color-blocked design (yes I just said rad. What? Color-blocking brings out my inner 80’s mall rat. At least I didn’t say totally tubular.) I marked my middle point and started to tape off the design with ScotchBlue Painter Tape. This always throws me off a little but here is a trick to remember. When you are taping off a line, put your tape on the opposite side of the line that you are painting. It may look a little wonky but it will divide your clock evenly.

ScotchBlue has different adhesive levels depending on your project. For this one I used the tape with the green writing, which is a regular adhesive, perfect for wood and most surfaces. (If you are taping on a delicate surface like Gritt’s freshly painted walls you will want to use the blue tape with orange writing.)

To get the edges of the circle so that they were sharp, straight and angular I cut pieces of tape that were 4” long. That way they are all evenly spaced around the edge and equally awesome.

If you are using spray paint you will want to tape off the entire clock that you do not want painted to protect it from overspray. Overspray is not our friend in this situation. Actually, its not our friend in any situation…just ask Court and the slab of concrete on the side of our house. Whoopsie.

After your paint has dried, peel your tape off and admire your handy work…(get it handy?? Cause it’s a CLOCK! Hahahaha)

Gritt (the room makeover winner) is from Berlin and her husband is from Chicago. They both have family still living in these far away places and I thought it would be fun to bring their presence into the room a little. So we made a clock for Salt Lake, Chicago and Berlin. I used a Silhouette to cut out the letters and stenciled it on with craft paint.

FYI because I used Shaun and paint that I already had from old projects I had spend ZERO dollars at this point. WOOT WOOT!

The $1.99 price tag comes from these cute Ikea clocks:

I simply disassembled the faces and used the hands. My clocks are not functioning clocks because I had no way to route out a spot in the back for the battery BUT you can do that and make them actual functioning clocks. Which would in fact be totally tubular.