Be my Guest House!

There are so many reasons to build a guest house or studio, cottage in the back yard. Some great reasons are to serve as a workspace, playroom, guest accommodation, and as a rental.

I know this is a plan we are looking into for the future, ideally building extra living quarters downstairs to accommodate for friends and family.

Essentially you can make your guest house fully self sustainable with kitchen and a bath depending on your budget.
Some great kits are available and there are plenty of D.I.Y instructions online.

I've been doing a little research, and in doing so, I came across the Tiny House Movement. It's basically a "social movement where people are downsizing the space that they live in". 

The tiny house is a great option for a guest house. 

Above is a free plan from The FHD. Click on the 'free plan' link and find others to choose from.

Below are inspirational examples for a comfy, cozy and stylish guest house. 

Above and Below: A transformed cargo container turned into a very stylish dwelling.

Above: Macy Miller's tiny house

 

Above: 136 sq ft space

 Rock and Roll homes!

Melting in the Phoenix sun.

We just got back from a little trip to Phoenix, AZ.  

The great thing about flying from Burbank to Phoenix is the hour and fifteen minute flight. The down side (in my opinion) is not being able to bring back all the goodies I wanted to get...like the extra large Bull's skull or giant Talavera pot!

Our next planned trip to the great state of Arizona will have to be a road trip through Phoenix, Flagstaff and a drive up to Utah's Zion National Park via the Grand Canyon. Well, that is what we came up with on the flight back home. 

Never dull when you are paired up with an adventurous beau!

  

 Above and Below: The Saguaro hotel in Oldtown, Scottsdale.

 Below: The Lobby of The Saguaro hotel.

 Below: Dream catcher I had to bring home with me. 

 Above and Below: Sugar skulls are still so in.

 Below: Mini Cowboy boots for my garden.

Below: The skeleton of the Saguaro cactus, I want one for my garden.

Rock and Roll AZ!

Peace, Love and Teepees!

I know it's a bit early to be thinking about Christmas presents, and this year, I'm getting organized. 

We have four (ages 8, 6, and two 5 year olds) of the sweetest little girls to get presents for each year and as they get older it gets harder and harder. I try and keep up with the fads and 'cool' things youngsters are into, but it changes so often. Besides that, we're supposed to be the 'cool Aunt and Uncle' so that pressure is on as well.

I like to think back to my younger days and how I loved making 'cubby houses' or 'play houses'. You know, the ones where you build a cozy fort made out of bed sheets and chairs, tables, whatever you had on hand.

I've found something awesome...

TEEPEES! Decorated and styled in a modern and fun way for the chic youngster. It can become a permanent fixture in a kids bedroom, play room or you could bring the fun outside and spend a lazy afternoon with a book or have a picnic. 

Take a look at these teepees ideas below and a D.I.Y. teepee pattern.

 Below: Land of the Nod Teepee for $159, two other colors available.

Below: Pottery Barn Kids teepee $249 

Below: DIY Big kid teepee by Cotton & Curls

(I think I will try this DIY out in the summer) 

WHO CAN FORGET ABOUT THE PETS?

...

Get outta town with how cute this is.

Rock and Rollin' in Teepees!

D.I.Y. Nailed it!

In my previous post Planter crazy! I showed various ways to display your beloved plants. 

While I was doing my search on planters, I stumbled upon this DIY Planter on A Beautiful Mess blog.

So I did it... and here are my results!

 Above: A trip to Anawalt Lumber. They had perfectly cut circular pieces of pine ply wood.

Below: Grabbing project supplies and a Whole Foods stop for some body fuel! 

 Above: I followed the DIY instructions for the most part. Simply put you can do whatever you want and use any color choices you like. Like baking a cake!

Below: Getting ready to sand

 Above: Mid-sand

Below: Still sanding...

 Above: Naphtha** was not included in the DIY instructions, but its great for getting all the small shards of wood dust before painting or staining...Wear GLOVES when using this, it's a chemical! 

**This is when the boyfriend insisted I use Naphtha, he uses this stuff to get particles off his guitars before coating them.

Below: setting up for the staining process, I used 'Gunstock' as my choice of color.

 Above: I did 5 layers of stain. It was a timely process, but well worth the results. Remember to apply thin coats each time.

Below: FINISHED! I did 3 coats of White on the circular pieces, again, I didn't rush this process. 

 Below: Love it! The painting, staining, and waiting for things to dry was a huge time factor.

A great weekend project, it won't be done immediately, but well worth the patience. I would totally do it again!

Rock and Roll D.I.Y!