12.19.2011

guest post::beauty and the beard

I am so happy to be hosting my very first guest post today from none other than Laura at Beauty and the Beard.


I had the pleasure of spending a wonderful semester with Laura during our Spanish class at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  She is now a midwest implant in the beautiful state of Virginia, and blogging has brought us back in touch, which I could not be more thrilled about.  I am in awe of her DIY projects and as you will see in this post, she continues to out-do herself with each project.  Not to mention she whips up a mean meal in the kitchen.  I hope you'll enjoy her blog as much as I have.

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Hello fellow lovers of A Simple Affair!

As Carly mentioned, I'm Laura from Beauty and the Beard- a blog I started when my boyfriend and I moved 1000+ miles away from home on a whim to start anew in the South. My blog is dedicated to the things I love most: simple delicious recipes, easy DIY crafts, and projects to improve our amazing apartment.

I'm thrilled to be able to do a guest post today, and I know if you loved Carly's post on statement necklaces that you'll love my most recent project! I definitely share her love of big necklaces -and I felt I needed to display the sparkling gems somewhere to show off their beauty. Since I live with my boyfriend I wanted to find somewhere to showcase them without making him have to stare at them all day every day- and the wall that serves as a headboard for our bed was the perfect nook to start out:

After checking out Pinterest I decided rakes, towel racks, and shower bars were not right fit for me - but when I saw some tree murals painted I knew that a necklace tree coming out of the corner of the wall was the way to go. First I penciled out the tree: 
(Go ahead, make fun of it. I know it looks like a 4 year old drew it- but have faith!)

Next I mixed up a charcoal grey color- which  I figured would be neutral enough to highlight all the necklace colors and bold enough to stand out on the wall:
(Yes, I had to wear my highest heels to paint the top of the tree- being 5'2" + no step stool = fashionable painting)
See? Much better than the pencil sketch:

After the paint dried I began hammering paneling nails along the branches for the necklaces to hang from:
(Make sure you leave at least 6 inches between your main branches so all your necklaces can show!)

The final step was to hang the necklaces ... 
the ones I could find at least - 2 months living here 
and I still haven't unpacked all the boxes! 

Leaves are lovely and all, but wouldn't you rather have a tree dripping with jewels? 
                           

After I hung all the necklaces,
I added some dangling earrings to the little, lower branches.  
Doesn't it perfectly fill in the wall and the tree?


So there you have it- a great way to take a bare wall and turn it into a showcase for all your favorite statement pieces. I hope each of you can find some inspiration here to make your own perfect display!

Thanks to Carly for letting me crash A Simple Affair- and all of you for taking the time to check out  Beauty and the Beard !

13 comments:

The Peak of Tres Chic said...

WOW! I am thoroughly impressed. What a neat project!!

XO,

Sam
www.ThePeakofTresChic.com

Jordan@the2seasons said...

This is so neat. I am going to pin this what a great idea. Not sure where I could do this but I can dream of doing it.

Mae B said...

wow!! I love this project...how fun! And yes, I would definitely rather have a tree dripping with jewels than leaves!
Thanks for stopping by! Cute blog, following now!
xx

travelkate said...

Very cute and creative!

Laura said...

Carly, Thanks so much for letting me do a guest post!!

Thanks to all for the compliments - hope you check out Beauty and the Beard!

Daniela said...

I love it! What a great way to keep everything organized while add some 'pretty' to a room :)

Michelle said...

What a fantastic idea! It turned out beautifully!

Elle Sees said...

WOW that turned out amazing!!

audrey marie said...

what a cute idea - that turned out SO cute!

p-l-a-i-d said...

This is an absolutely fabulous idea! I love it! Thanks for sharing! Just found your blog, and i'm following now!

Kat Tanita (With Love From Kat) said...

obsessed with this!!! what a cute idea :) thanks for your comment on my blog! my dress is from BCBG a few years ago!

xo
kat

Samantha said...

I need to do this!! This is amazing! Already pinned to my Pinterest board to try sometime soon! What color did you use for the tree?

Laura said...

Hi guys! Thanks for all the sweet comments about my tree!! I just mixed up some acrylic paint to a light charcoal- about 1/2 cup of white paint adding a few drops of black at a time! Glad you pinned it!!

Laura
Beautyandbeard.blogspot.com