DIY Decorative Juju Hat Inspired Wall Decor Tutorial

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African/Cameroon Juju hats have been around as home decor for a few years. They’re so beautiful, artisanal/handmade (symbolize prosperity, worn by ceremonial dancers). DIY decorative Juju hat inspired tutorial:

DIYShowOff Juju hat wall decor tutorial

juju hat wall decor diy

When a friend of mine had to part ways with her African Juju hat wall decor (you don’t want to know), she was in the market for a replacement. It’s been a while since I’ve been crafty and what better time than the new year for a fresh start?! Perfect timing. A perfect opportunity to focus on the positive and to send some good juju to a friend. 

What’s your first DIY project of the new year? Looking for and easy, fun and “GOOD” DIY to jumpstart 2022? This is the perfect little project for you to try! I felt empowered and inspired so I opened up my Amazon app and ordered these supplies: 

diy materials for juju hat wall decor

Materials I used (referral links):

cardboard circle (could easily make one from recycled cardboard too, especially if you’ve been procrastinating the holiday clean up!)

• feather trim ( purchased 2 of this feather trim and 1 of this feather fringe trim)

• aluminum pop top (removed from can) to hang (could also use string or hang with push pins)

Tools:

hot glue gun/sticks, scissors

What I did:

I found the center of my cardboard circle. From there, I drew a straight line to the outer edge. 

tape measure

Using scissors, I cut along the line. 

scissors

Next, using hot glue along one side of the cut, I glued the other side slightly on top to create a little bit of a ‘bowl’-shape. It’s very slight…just enough to give it a 3D look.

Gorilla Glue gun cardboard circle

Then, protect your fingers ‘cuz that hot glue is HOT! Be careful! (I used a capped pen to hold down the ribbon as needed.) Determine placement and start attaching the bottom of the feather trip to the cardboard circle. I worked my way around the outer edge. 

hot glue feather trim feather crafts feather circle

Repeat in circles for complete coverage. Based on your supplies, determine how close together to cover the cardboard. I alternated the 2 different feather trims. 

gluing feather trim feather ribbon juju hat craft project making a juju hat decoration gray feathers placing feathers circle of feathers juju hat inspired wall decor circle of gray feather trim cutting feather trim hot gluing feathers diy juju hat wall decor making a juju hat DIY juju hat tutorial easy diy feather project juju hat DIY

For the center, add a coordinating or same color silk flower. Or, like me, take a bit of leftover trim and roll to create a “center” piece. Attach with hot glue. 

glue gun and feather trim feather trim craft flower feather boa craft craft project with feathers

Fill in with individual feathers as needed.

scissors and gray feathers gray feather and glue gun gray feather craft idea

Attach hanging mechanism of choice to the back with hot glue. 

hanging wall decor with a pop top

Easy peasy! Much lighter and not as detailed or heavy as the real thing but beautiful none-the-less and special because you made it yourself!

The result:

diy juju hat wall art diy gray juju hat wall art

Texture! Softness. Beauty!

poofy feather wall art sitting room wall art diy DIYShowOff Juju hat wall decor tutorial gray juju hat wall decor diy gray feather juju hat decor

I’m hooked and plan to create several more! More feather trim as been ordered! I need a fluffier one! A feather boa would work as well (although a little messier)! Maybe some rattan coasters for the center or a coordinating silk peony would be beautiful too. I’ll come back and post more pictures. Interested in adding yours to the feature? Submit your juju hat photo to thediyshowoff at gmail. 

How about you? Ready to get crafty, creative and inspired in 2022?

 

DIY Shed Door

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DIY Shed Door! You know those projects you procrastinate, something that just sits around unfinished for years? Until finally, you just can’t take it anymore and the time arrives for getting ‘er done? Yep, that’s this project.

 

For four years now, the shed at the my downtown property has been wide open! And while it always bugged me, it just kept holding it’s position at the bottom of the to-do list. Until now. 

When I bought the property, there was only 1 plank with hinges for a door. lol And it wasn’t high on the list of priorities but with an upcoming photo shoot of the short term rental apartment (Suite Thyme) AND with the only quiet seating area right there beside it AND with summer coming, that eye sore worked it’s way to the top of the list. 

Before: just a small shed, filled with dead leaves, probably home to a few squirrels and lots of spiders. ::shudders::

An old fence gate propped up…really didn’t serve any purpose. Other than it just came with the property and found it’s way there. I don’t even know how it got there. haha!

And so…

Supplies I used for a custom 22.5 x 75 inch shed door:

  • OSB cut to size. 
  • (5) 1×3 pine boards – I just guessed on what I’d need for all of the wood pieces and over-estimated a bit. I never mind having extra on hand. 
  • (3) 1×2 pine boards
  • (2) 1×1 pine boards
  • (1) paintable outdoor rated caulk
  • (1) outdoor rated adhesive
  • (2) outdoor rated primer
  • outdoor rated paint
  • this handle
  • this hasp
  • these hinges (not used, more on that later)

What I did:

After measuring the space (and believe me, nothing in this old late 1800s property is square…so frustrating), Russ cut an old piece of OSB to size for me to use as my base. OSB isn’t the best product for an outdoor project, but this is the first door I’ve ever built and this was the best and easiest way for me personally to test my design skills. Fingers crossed that with it being the inside of the door/in the shed and that it’s good and sealed, that it works just fine longer term. 

I then set about sketching up some inspiration, nothing to scale but I wanted to get an idea of what I was going for. Something with a little more detail and style than the standard barn style shed door. 

Then I set the OSB on saw horses and created a frame on the face of it with 1x3s. 

I messed around with the pieces a few times before I decided on a pattern. 

 

Utilizing a mix of mitered 1x3s, 1x2s and 1x1s, I settled on a chevron design. I enjoyed this part, like putting together a puzzle. 

After cutting each piece, I adhered them to the OSB base with adhesive and clamped the edges and weighted the pieces where the clamps couldn’t reach. I did notice what putting them together with adhesive is different than just laying them out and re-cut 2 mitered pieces for a better fit during this process. 

Once dry, I caulked all of the joints and cracks. 

Then applied a coat of primer. I used a spray primer but next time, I’d go with (and recommend) applying with a brush and roller. 

All sides got two coats of paint. 

And … tada!

Time to hang. The sizing was pretty much spot on but we did have to make a few adjustments and the new hinges gave us such a hard time that after about an hour, we decided to utilize the old original hinges which took about 10 minutes! Live and learn. lol 

Now there’s no longer a gaping hole! Guests enjoying the outdoor seating probably won’t think much of it but I do think they’ll notice. And I’m happy to have a place for outdoor yard tools, pots and salt for winter. 

2020 Catch Up

Hellooooo, DIYShowOff friends! I know. I know! “What the heck, Roeshel?!” It’s been a while since I’ve blogged. What a crazy year it’s been, right? I’ve been itching and wanting to get in here to post but … LIFE. You know how it goes. Things have been busy and I’ve been pulled in so many directions (bringing it on myself, do you do that too?) and I’ve neglected my little slice of cyber space. But here I am! I’m ready to catch you up, my faithful followers and friends, my DIY buddies. And gasp! A blog post with no lovely pin-worthy photos this time around but stay tuned because this girl is back! Here’s what’s been going on with me. It’s been a whirlwind!

Wellness Inspired Living – It’s been over 6 years of discovering Young Living and making healthier choices and 3 years ago today (bring on the champagne!), we closed on a property in the city of Butler. It wasn’t in my plans but when opportunity falls into place and things just work out, you go with the flow, right? I wasn’t property shopping or looking and I didn’t stress over it. I stumbled across it. I met with the owner. He was so sweet, so cute and there was a connection over the character and charm in the old building. I told myself if it was meant to be, it’d happen. And it did! #helloredreno was the beginning of creating a space for my wellness and short term rental business and it has been a blessing to so many with educational workshops, a place to support an amazing team with small wellness events and changing lives. It’s a blast! It’s a mission so dear to my heart. I love my circle of oily friends! My love for the roller coaster experience with this amazing network marketing company because making a difference in raising awareness for building a strong immune system is as strong as it ever was! 

Suite Thyme – with Wellness Inspired Living on the main floor, the upstairs was an empty shell of un-utilized space. I knew I wanted to renovate “someday” to create a short term rental where I could host out of town guests and contribute to our small town. My original mindset was much like our house … DIY makeover as time and money allow. Well, you know how that goes. There’s never EVER enough time or money to complete a large scale project and nothing was being accomplished. I think that’s why God introduced me to one of my best of friends, Shelby from Suite Retreat Bed & Biscotti from right across the street. Full of life, motivation and a huge adventurous spirit bigger than life, she gave me the advice and little push to make it happen, to get my butt in gear and a little over a year and a half ago, that empty upstairs shell transformed into Suite Thyme and was listed on AirBnB and VRBO. First year of business is always a little rocky, especially when you throw “lockdown 2020” into the mix but I have to tell you, hosting out of town guests has become one of my favorite things to do! I love being a part of inspiring beautiful memories and making getting away special for others!

Thyme & Mint. Those things inspired some beautiful connections with the creating of personal wellness retreat options. A collection of carefully curated intention collections with The Lunar Fae (my amazing daughter, Evangeline’s etsy shop) providing reiki infused crystals and The Witchn’ Kitchen (a sweet friend who opened up shop on the adjacent corner of Wellness Inspired Living (essential oils) /Suite Thyme) … all things herbal knowledge providing bath soaks, these collections are created with lots of love and personalized intention. We also partnered up to provide options for creating a personal wellness retreat including private yoga sessions by Healing with Amber; crystal healing, guided meditation, sound baths by The Lunar Fae and The Wandering Bramble, Aroma Freedom with Wellness Inspired Living, tea leaf readings and herbal/energy consultations with The Witchn’ Kitchen. We’ve had wonderful positive feedback on the collaboration of these services and put so much care and love into offering up these one on one self care packages. 

WoW. I’ve had the best time getting to know Shelby from Suite Retreat. Down the street is another women owned business, a quaint antique boutique shop called Then & Again and Forever. Wellness Inspired Living and Suite Thyme on another corner. And when The Witchn’ Kitchen opened up along with Bent Oak Plant Co. across the street, and All About ReClaimed, — a boutique/wellness/shopping/lodging district was born! We call ourselves Butler Women of Washington (our street) or WoW and are on a mission to support women owned business, work together providing fun vendor events and local festivals and to inspire revitalization in our community. 

Oh! And I’ve been having the time of my life helping with designs on a new short term rental space. Simply helping a friend with decorating and design decisions and it’s starting to come together. I know I’m going to want to LIVE there. It’s unfolding into this beautiful magical happily ever after makeover story. I plan on sharing some crazy before and after about it as soon as it’s ready. Exciting! 

So whew! A lot going on, right? 

And you know my heart is filled with so much love for my grandson and you guys! He’s turning 6 years old already this month! SIX! Time is just flying by! Know what else? He’s getting a brother in less than 2 months!!! This mother of two girls is going to be a grandmother to two boys! I am so excited! I am so blessed! I can’t wait!

2020 is also the year I turned 50. Oh.my.goodness. A big milestone that’s gotten pushed aside. A lot of reflection. A lot of gratitude. March 2020 didn’t allow for a big celebration. We haven’t felt comfortable booking a celebratory travel destination either. But I’m looking forward to finishing out the year on a positive happy vibe and making the 5th decade of my story the best chapter yet! 

Okay. Back to DIYShowOff. With so much going on, I’ve neglected my passion for maintaining a beautiful home. Projects half finished, rooms cluttered and un-used, things feeling blah and boring. I miss surrounding myself with cozy comfort, seeing my home as my favorite safe haven and have a new desire to freshen things up and to resume my DIY lovin’ habits. Maybe a little ‘nesting’ with a new grand-baby on the way (?) but I am SO ready to dive in and get things done!

First up I’ve been working to downsize my closet. You guys, there are still professional work clothes from at least 10 years ago hanging untouched in the dressing room. And my craft room? It’s like a sealed vault. I haven’t opened that door in well over a year or more. We have a man cave creation in progress that’s been on hold. And remember one of my very first DIY makeovers…that bathroom with the painted floor? It’s time to give it some grown up DIY with tile! 

Time to clear out the clutter that’s weighing me down. There’s no two week tropical vacation in our December this year (boo) so I’ve decided to move full speed ahead into creating an in-home oasis. For me that means, out with the things that no longer serve us and changing up rooms to utilize and make the most of our entire home. Those early DIYShowOff room makeovers are feeling old and tired and I’m ready for some good old budget friendly DIY to change things up!

What’s new with you? I’m so ready and so happy to get re-acquainted and can’t wait to see what’s new with you!