Re-Upholstered Mid Century Modern Chairs from Thriftstores!

Before...

Inspiring Phone Backgrounds

Lately I've been on a bit of a kick to add a little fun & inspiration into every facet of my life... maybe because I'm already anticipating the winter blues coming. So I put together a little album of phone backgrounds I found that I find inspiring that I can choose from all the time to change up my phone and give me an extra boost of encouragement when I need it. I have an iPhone 6, so I am biased in that I picked ones that fit my phone, but I'm thinking most could work on other phones too.

All pictures are links to full sized options... unfortunately couldn't find any credits. Enjoy.

Green Mango Smoothie Recipe + My Favourite Smoothie Ingredients

Because I know not everyone has the same taste in healthy smoothies, I decided to separate this post into 2 sections: a recipe, as well as a list of smoothie ingredients I love and why. This way you can re-mix and match these ideas with what you already like to create even more great smoothies.

My Favourite Smoothie Ingredients

1. FROZEN. MANGO. Hands down my favourite ingredient. The cheapest for me seems to be from Costco if you live in North America! Its so flavourful, filling, and thick.
2. Ice Cubes. So underrated, they give a better texture to your smoothie and make it seem like it's more filling without the calories
3. Water! I find I can get myself to drink a lot more water if I use it as the main base of my smoothie. I used to add juices and then realized the amount of calories I was concocting together was insane. I also love coconut water as far as its natural qualities of replenishing electrolytes (yasss, natural Gatorade),  but I don't think its necessarily something I haaave to have on hand all the time.
4. Frozen strawberries- I find they also help keep smoothies thicker when frozen as opposed to fresh. They pack a stronger flavour than mango so they're great for covering up other tastes of healthy things you don't necessarily love.
5. Rolled oats-- they help keep you feeling full longer and help balance your blood sugar level out. I don't know why they're not in more recipes, it may seem like a strange concept but you don't really taste them so long as youre not adding too much.
6. Chia seeds! I was afraid of adding these to my smoothies for so long because I thought it would add a granular texture but IT DOESN'T! Chia seeds absorb water and help keep the smoothie a thicker consistency, so yummy! Not to mention they're so good for you (although you shouldn't poor in too much).
7. Baby spinach- such a good way of adding greens without really changing the taste
8. Dandelion greens- add a bit more of a fresh taste to your smoothie
9. Vegetable green powders- (Progressive VegeGreens etc.) an easy way to add that extra vegetable intake to your day, especially if you don't have produce on hand. It cannn alter the taste in a negative way, but it's honestly not as bad as I expected at all. I used to make fun of someone I knew for taking this, and now I feel like an idiot.
10. Kale, especially frozen! Like dandelion greens, add a bit more of a fresh taste to your smoothie. You don't need as much because kale is so much more dense.

Green Mango Smoothie Recipe

• 2 cups of cold water
• ~1 cup ice
• 1 1/2 cups frozen mango
• ~2 tbsp. chia seeds 
• a dash of oats (~1/4 cup)
• (optional) protein powder of choice (my favourite is currently Body Fortress Whey Protein in Vanilla)
• greens of choice- lately I've been opting for a large handful of baby spinach

Blogs I'm Loving

Blogs I'm Currently Loving, 

and Some Die Hard Favourites 

screen shot of website

A Kailo Chic Life

...particularly her craft section! Very whimsical, upbeat, happy, fun kind of vibe to her work, which I'm loving.

Die Hard Favourite:

Bldg 25 aka Free People's Blog

but all I really pay attention to is the DIY section (sorry not sorry)... check thattt out here







See more after the jump below :)

5 Home DIY Projects You Need to See

That's right-- 5. Not 27. Not 13. This post it about quality over quantity in a link-based article.

Without further adieu, may I present to you,

 5 DIY Projects You Need to See...

1]Pocketful of Posie's Secret to Perfectly Striped Drawers

Can you even..?

Not only is this DIY something I've never seen before, it's executed perfectly.

DIY Painted and Découpaged Shelf

     This shelf used to a plain, dated, unfinished pine. I found it sitting around in our basement and was going to donate it, but decided I should try my hand at modernizing it.
So I got to work- sanding the surface by hand with sandpaper, ***varnishing all the knots so that they don't bleed through, and priming and painting it in Para melamine furniture paint white (on hand). 

World's Easiest Upcycle and an Amazing Goodwill Find!

I found this beauty at Goodwill for $20....A couple saw it in my cart and offered to pay me $40 if I'd let them have it- so surprising! But I couldn't give it up, I had the perfect vision for it.

DIY Picture Wall On the Cheap

Incredibly Easy DIY Curtains

On my back door in my house we have a really awkward tiny window I always wanted to update. But I was at a loss of what to do with it, as its a strange looking double thick window that really more than anything I just wanted to hide. I love what I've seen of people putting contact paper on their windows, but it wasn't an option here because that window is just so ugly. I refused a before picture, that's how bad it and the out-dated single panel curtain on it were.

DIY Vintage Mid-Century Modern Style Nightstand

A Furniture Makeover!

Before....

I desperately needed a new nightstand (bedside table, whatever you'd like to call it), so I scoured Kijiji* constantly, with filters on price because of a small budget. I ended up finding this beautiful little diamond in the rough- a mid-century modern looking piece, incredibly well made but with a dated dark laminate finish with solid wood legs for $20. Cute with a hint of ew.
             *if you're American, Kijiji is like Craigslist, if you're from the UK, Kijiji is like GumTree... If you're from none of the above, I'd love to know what similar resell websites are in your part of the globe!

DIY Upholstered Bed: Ikea Fjellse Hack

My first blog post!

before