When we lived at the beach I collected seashells every chance I got. I always wanted a beachy themed bathroom and the little guest bath in our Marina del Rey house was the perfect time for it.
I threw together this cute little seashell flower craft with leftover wood, some seashells and glass beads in less than 10 minutes. After beating the wood up a bit with a hammer, I gave it a light coat of stain and sanded it back after it dried.
Super easy seashell flower
Before I placed the shells and beads, I turned it over and drilled a hold at the centre near the top to hang it from. Be sure not to go all the way through the wood to the front side if you do this.
Beachy bathroom – diy seashell flower craft
The broken side of the wood kind of lent itself to the stem of a flower, so I just dry fit it all together and then glued each piece in place with regular clear glue. Make sure you let it dry overnight before hanging. You can place a small nail in the wall and simply place it in the hole you drilled.
Learn how I made this fancy light cover from a $5 placemat in my next post.
In the next post I’ll share how I made that fancy light cover from a placemat!
Our windows in our last place were 11 feet long. A big picture window in the centre and then an opening slider on each side. On the left side the slider went straight to the wall, leaving no room for a curtain. On the right we had some extra wall space. So what I wanted was one long rod where I could just pull all the curtains off to the right side and have the window clear of any material.
Do you think I could find a rod long enough and strong enough without a centre support? NOPE. So I set about to figure out a DIY solution.
Well luckily we were back in California where bamboo is abundant. My husband found a piece at his work that was long enough and had lost it’s leaves. We cut it down and took it home.
Make a strong, long curtain rod from a piece of bamboo!
We had to order special rings to fit the bamboo. We needed 2.5″ diameter and could not find anything in any of the stores that big. These rings were the most expensive part of this treatment at $24.99 for a package of 10. We needed two. Good thing the rod itself was free!
Tablecloth as a curtain. Bamboo as a curtain rod
The curtains are actually tablecloths I got at amazon for a previous project. I think I paid $5 for each one.
We simply set the bamboo on a large coat hook bought at home depot. We used 3, at $5 each.
DIY bamboo rod – We just set it on large coat hooks and screwed a small screw into the end it didn’t slide when moving the curtains.
This was an easy, cheap project that fit my custom needs…something I wasn’t even able to buy any where. Now I did make one mistake….and that was I didn’t let the bamboo dry out before I put it up and hung curtains from it. And as a result it did start to bend in the centre. I fixed it simply by rotating it so it would bend back. But if you do this project I’d suggest letting the bamboo dry out for a week before hanging.
DIY Bamboo Curtain Rod – A strong solution when you don’t want a centre support
I fell in love with our current house the moment we toured it. Blinded by love I ignored the small, outdated, non-functional kitchen. I thought it won’t be so bad…only one person can fit in there, which inevitably is going to be me, and there’s no storage for anything, but the ocean view from the patio, the canal view from virtually every room, I can totally handle that kitchen. The honeymoon lasted about a week. With no where to put a broom and my abnormally large collection of cleaning supplies, I set out to turn a blank transition wall into a functional storage space. I didn’t want it to be obtrusive, or anything we had to work to get around. I also didn’t want to spend much money since it’s a rental.
The previous tenants had removed the louvered doors from the closet downstairs and that’s what I decided to use for my broomcloset. I attached two 2×4’s to the wall with L-brackets, which is what the doors hang from. Since the doors were originally double doors that fold with a centre hinge, I removed the hinge, thus giving me two doors from one. I then re-attached the hinges on the outside of the doors, and attached those to the 2×4 on either side. I now have a set of doors that open from the middle.
2×4’s attached with L-Brackets, Doors attached with hinges
I then placed a 2×4 along the centre bottom to prevent the doors from being pushed forward. This also doubles as a shelf for my cleaning supplies. Since I knew exactly what I wanted to house in this closet, I eyeballed where to place hooks to hang my broom and dustpan and dusters. Once I had those in place, I added one last shelf in the left over space. The last step is to paint the wood to blend with the wall.
All the hooks & shelves arranged perfectly. It also has a swiffer that’s not pictured.
This entire project cost me less than $5 because I had most of the materials on hand. It’s located on a wall that would otherwise be a waste of space because it is a walkway between the dining room and kitchen. To put a table or anything other than this 5″ depth closet would be visually confining and a chore to walk around. I love this little closet, it’s the perfect size and the perfect location in my home.
Last thursday we went to the Orpheum Threatre in downtown L.A. to see Death Cab for Cutie. First of all, the theatre was gorgeous. Built in 1926 it has all the grandeur you would expect from such a landmark.
Orpheum Theatre DTLA
L.A. band Bleached opened for Death Cab…we only caught the last couple of songs but they sounded great.
Bleached – L.A. band
I wouldn’t say I was a huge fan of Death Cab before this concert….if it came on the radio, I liked it, but it’s not anything I would put on of my own free will. I always need to watch that kind of band play before I can fully appreciate them musically. It was definitely a great show and I enjoyed watching them play as much as I enjoyed listening to them.
On Thursday we in downtown L.A. to see Death Cab For Cutie at the Orpheum Theatre. The concert didn’t start until 8 so we wanted to find a good restaurant for some dinner and drinks before the show. My husband is great at pre-researching restaurants because we are both beer snobs AND foodies AND I’m a bathroom snob.
By the time we got downtown I had to pee (of course) so we opted for the closer of the 2 options we had and I’m glad we did. The Stocking Frame was awesome. First, huge restaurant. I was pleasantly surprised at how big it was. The ambiance was great, low lighting, very cool decor, ample seating and different groups of areas.
The Stocking Frame – DTLA
We sat at the main bar but on my way to the restroom (which was CLEAN and cool) I discovered a sexy little bar at the back with a rave-y feel (not that I’ve ever been to a rave. Sidenote: restroom stalls had mirrors on the backs of the doors! Why doesn’t everyone do that!
It was too dark for me to take pics but I did scoop this one off their facebook page: The Stocking Frame
For an appetizer we had the brisket pizza…delish, no pic sorry, I always forget to photo food! Then I had the burger which was soooo good. In my opinion way better than The Counter burger, but not in my husband’s opinion. The fries were perfect. My husband had the duck. I was too full to taste but he did love it.
The Stocking Frame DTLA – Burger
As for beer, no hefes on tap but it will still a balanced selction…North Coast, St. Archer, Einstok and Ommegang stood out. Overall, great place and hope to visit again!
Well we only stopped here for a quick bite after our hike at Charmlee Wilderness Park, but it was definitely worth writing home about. We noticed Spruzzo as we were driving out to start our hike and so glad we stopped on the way back.
View from Spruzzo’s Patio in Malibu
We sat on the patio, which is huge, probably about 18 tables or so. Really nice view. I imagine this place is packed every day in the summer. The eucalyptus trees smelled wonderful.
I really do suck at taking pictures of food (much better with beer 😉 ) so you won’t get to experience the caprese salad we had for an appetizer. Guess you’ll just have to go check it out yourself 😉 But I will say it was wonderful. Mozzarella so fresh, could have used a touch more basil, but I’m an herb hog so ymmv.
Fantastic pizza at Spruzzo’s in Malibu
The pizza was amazing. …I told you I suck at taking pics of food. I had to devour a piece before I remembered to take a pic! This is probably the best pizza I’ve had since being in L.A. Not greasy at all. Not saucy, which is a turn off for me. The chicken was tasty. Sometimes when you order chicken on pizza it tastes like it was boiled in plain water, which is nasty. This chicken was delish.
The beer selection was not amazing. I did find one that I could drink. Fire Rock pale ale from Kona Brewing. I do not like hoppy beers so I was pleasantly surprised I could drink this. Guinness was bottled. The rest of the selection was typical non-beer-drinker beers (bud, coors lite, etc). I was surprised there weren’t any italian beers to be honest. Peroni would have fit into this menu quite well. I think it may be more of a wine bar however.
We didn’t stay long and Spruzzo’s wasn’t too busy when we first got here, it was late afternoon, but the service was awesome. Bathrooms were clean! A must for me. It was only a single bathroom…so I would expect a bit of wait on a busy night. But the food and service would probably be worth it.
We had a busy day yesterday…started out with some swimming and Bella’s most favourite thing in the world to do…water fountaining. This dog used to lie down and refuse to even move away from the fountain lol, she never wanted to leave. Now we’ve got her to realize she can come back so she willingly leaves now. Crazy dog.
After some thorough water play we hit the waves. Was a beautiful day, clear enough to see the Santa Monica Mountains, a gentle warm breeze and the sun was out in the morning.
Dog surfing in marina del reySanta Monica Mountains, Marina del Rey Beach
From there we decided to head out to Malibu for a hike.
View looking down on the coast, Mailbu, Santa Monica, Venice. You can even see Catalina in the distance.
We ended up at Charmlee Wilderness Park…a dog-friendly park with actual bathrooms and real soft dirt trails. There’s a 4$ parking fee so be sure to bring some change. Just grab an envelope, fill out the permit for your vehicle and drop the cash into the envelope and place the little slot thingy.
Charmlee Wilderness Park MapView from Charmlee Wilderness Park
It was such a gorgeous day. When we first arrived, we were only one of 3 cars…by the time we left the parking lot was full. So we scored by having almost the whole park to ourselves. Very different from peak season and so much more peaceful and enjoyable. Perfect weather, not too hot, not too cold.
Water pump in Charmlee Wilderness Park
Had my husband not been with me I’d have no idea what this was. Apparently it’s an old water well, just sitting there randomly lol.
Charmless Wilderness Park, Santa Monica MountainsCharmless Wilderness Park, Santa Monica Mountains
You can’t see the dog but she is in front of my husband, doing some very important dog stuff.
Charmless Wilderness Park, Santa Monica Mountains
The trail was really nice to walk. Soft dirt, which I very much prefer over paved fire road. Some slight up hill and slight down hill, nothing too extreme or taxing.
Charmless Wilderness Park, Santa Monica Mountains
There, you can finally see the dog lol. I had some fun at www.befunky.com editing the last 4 pics with a filter. My husband is a much better photographer than I so I fake it with filters LOL.
Wiped out
By the time we got home this dog was wiped out. Crashed on the couch and didn’t move much all night <3 We did stop for dinner at a new restaurant on the way home but I’ll save that for another post.
A lifestyle blog about health, dogs, DIY and a hefty side of wine & beer
